Repentance
by Ayslinn
Summary: In the aftermath of Meteor and the demise of Shinra, Reeve is determined to rebuild Midgar without the Mako power and the towering Plate of the city's past. Focuses on Reeve, Tifa, and the Turks. Rated for Reno's foul mouth
1. Prologue - Anticipation

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: _This is my first fan fic EVER of anything. The prologue is set a few years after Meteor and the fall of Shinra The entire story, except for the Prologue, Epilogue, and various Interludes, is written in flashback. There are 3 distinct timeframes in the story: Pre-game, end of game, and very post-game. I don't do disclaimers. Read the "Standard Disclaimer" in my profile if you need to be reminded of copyright issues._

***** 

**AFTERMATH**

**BOOK ONE - REPENTANCE**

**_*****_**

**PROLOGUE – ANTICIPATION**

_'Well I just heard the news today ... It seems my life is going to change ... I close my eyes, begin to pray ... Then tears of joy stream down my face ... With arms wide open ... Under the sunlight ... Welcome to this place ... I'll show you everything ... With arms wide open ... Well I don't know if I'm ready ... To be the man I have to be ... I'll take a breath, take her by my side ... We stand in awe, we've created life ... With arms wide open ... Under the sunlight ... Welcome to this place ... I'll show you everything ... With arms wide open ... Now everything has changed ... I'll show you love ... I'll show you everything ... With arms wide open ... If I had just one wish ... Only one demand ... I hope he's not like me ... I hope he understands ... That he can take this life ... And hold it by the hand ... And he can greet the world ... With arms wide open (Creed: 'With Arms Wide Open')'_

Midgar. Night. 

The beauty rose silently from the bed as not to disturb her husband who still slept soundly beneath the sheets. She moved slowly to the window, peering out into the starry night from their home in one of Midgar's new high-rise condominiums. 

Her hands rested softly on her swollen stomach as she looked over the rebuilding, yet proud city, lit with a soft glow from streetlights. No longer were the plates there to separate the classes. With the mayor's new design, all could enjoy looking up and seeing the sky from their homes and yards. 

She smiled gently as the life within her shifted and whispered softly, "Soon, little one. Soon..." 

He felt her move from the bed, careful not to disturb him, as she had been doing more and more as she grew closer to her due date. He studied through half lidded eyes her womanly outline backlit from the moon glow coming in through the window as he did nearly every night that she awoke. 

A contented smile took up residence upon his lips, watching her, wondering how someone as irresponsible as himself had ever gotten lucky enough to have a high position in the new Midgar government **and** call the beauty standing at the window his wife, the soon-to-be mother of his, no, **their**, child. 

So lost in her thoughts was she that she didn't hear him get out of bed and walk over to stand behind her. She wasn't consciously aware of his presence until she felt his arms wrap themselves around her and his hands come to rest on her pregnant stomach pulling her close to him. 

"Can't sleep again?" He asked her softly, letting his lips graze gently against her ear. 

So soft, so tender he always was with her; not at all what she would have expected from him. 

She shook her head. "I can't get comfortable." As if on cue, the baby shifted inside her again. 

Feeling his child move inside her body, he smiled in rapture. "That makes two of you." 

She laughed gently, a small tinkling laugh that never failed to delight him from head to toe. "Three. You're not in bed either, love." 

He laughed huskily against her ear. "But I am comfortable, standing here with my arms wrapped around my family." He smiled as the word 'family' escaped his lips. Something he never thought he'd have again. Something he never thought he'd need or want, but here he stood in his home with his beautiful family. 

She smiled at the word family, knowing his thoughts as they were echoed in her own mind. Two people, each having lost their family, and now with one of their own, determined to give this child what they had lost. 

She continued to gaze out the window content to be in his embrace as her eyes roamed over the new beginnings of the city they called home. She stood there remembering what it had been before and how it was now being rebuilt from the ashes of absolute devastation; mirroring the journey of their own lives. 

"Come back to bed, sweetheart." He released her from his embrace and took her by the hand, leading her back to bed. "You still need your rest." He kissed her softly as she settled back into the bed. His arms wrapped around her protectively and she snuggled close to him as though their bodies had been made to fit exactly with the other. 

The child growing within her settled down as she was finally able to let sleep's blissful enchantment claim her again. 


	2. One - Angels

_*****_

**CHAPTER ONE - ANGELS**

_'I don't know where I'm going ... But, I sure know where I've been ... Hanging on the promises in songs of yesterday ... And I've made up my mind ... I ain't wasting no more time ... But, here I go again ... Here I go again ... Tho' I keep searching for an answer ... I never seem to find what I'm looking for ... Oh Lord, I pray You give me strength to carry on ... Cos I know what it means ... To walk along the lonely street of dreams ... And here I go again on my own ... Goin' down the only road I've ever known ... Like a drifter I was born to walk alone ... An I've made up my mind ... I ain¹t wasting no more time ... I'm just another heart in need of rescue ... Waiting on love's sweet charity ... And '¹m gonna hold on for the rest of my days ... Cos I know what it means ... To walk along the lonely street of dreams ... (Whitesnake: 'Here I Go Again')'_

Grassy Plain. Morning. 

The eight remaining members of Avalanche stood on the grassy plain a distance away from the smoldering remains of Midgar and the shantytown of tents that had grown up to house the once-prosperous city's refugees. Conflicting emotions hung in the air as they congratulated one another and prepared to say their good-byes as each headed off to face their own towns and begin to shape their own futures. 

Cloud was squatting on the ground around a pile of brightly colored materia stones. The young ninja from Wutai hovered near him, whining. "But you promised me all the materia when this was all over." Her eyes were glazed over with greed as she looked at the materia pile grow as each of the Avalanche members added their personal stashes to the communal pile. 

"Not everyone promised you their materia, Yuffie." Cloud stated, trying to remain patient. "We may all still need our materia." He glanced around the group. "We don't know what remnants of Shinra or Hojo's monsters we may encounter." 

Yuffie pouted some more, hoping that the others wouldn't need or want their materia. In reality, she had her eye on the powerful red summons materia orbs. Cure, Restore... useful to her, but not what she was really after. Her father would be so proud of her for returning home with the most powerful materia orbs on the Planet. She smiled, thinking of the homecoming she would receive and of the prosperous future of Wutai. 

The Highwind stood waiting several yards away from them as Cid shifted around anxiously wanting to get home, wondering what was left of his own town. He hoped that the devastation wasn't as severe as the hulking destruction that towered behind them, as grotesque in its destruction as it was magnificent in its life. 

"The kid can have mine." He announced between puffs on the ever-present cigarette that dangled from the corner of his mouth. "I don't see where I'll be needing it." 

Tifa looked in shock at the blonde pilot who had become a friend despite his abrasive manner and initial reaction when they had first asked for the Tiny Bronco. "Are you sure, Cid? You don't want to sell it to pay for new rocket supplies?" 

"Hell, I got more important things to worry about." Cid felt all eyes fall upon him and he wondered momentarily if he had really said that out loud. Realizing that his friends were waiting for an answer, he tried to hide the slight blush that crept onto his cheeks, and knew that the words had indeed slipped from his lips. "Shit. Don't you people have materia to sort?" 

Sensing his friend's embarrassment, the graceful red beast stepped forward and merely said. "My father and all of those before him protected the Canyon without use of materia. I will do the same." Nanaki's pride and conviction in his place in Cosmo Canyon's future was absolute. "My share of the materia is Yuffie's to keep." 

"Hey, Vincent! You don't want a ride?" Cid asked as the silent member of their group nodded to Yuffie, telling her in his dark, quiet manner that he too wished her to have his materia and then turned to walk away. Cid ground out the cigarette with the heel of his boot as he waited for Vincent's response. 

Vincent shook his head. His raven hair moved only slightly against his back as if even it did not dare disturb the body or mind of the dark owner it was attached to. "My suffering is mine alone," He stated simply as he walked away. 

The remaining members of Avalanche sadly watched Vincent walk away, each knowing that the suffering he had gone through was deeper than any of them could truly begin to understand. As Vincent disappeared from view, Barrett spoke to relieve the tension created by the former Turk's departure. 

"Kid can have mine too. I'm goin' home to North Corel. Junon's already announced they're restarting their ol' coal plants. I'm gonna help reopen the mine. I owe it to those people." His face fell momentarily as the guilt of his part in the horror of Corel's past destruction resurfaced, but was forgotten as Marlene hugged Tifa in farewell. 

"You'll come visit us, won't you, Tifa?" The little girl asked her favorite "aunt" with her usual childlike effervescence. "Miss Elmyra's coming with us. You can visit her too." 

Tifa knelt in order to meet Marlene eye to eye and hugged the little girl. "You bet I will. You be good for your dad and Elmyra." She smiled and gave Marlene a Cure materia that she had held back from the community pile, figuring that Yuffie would neither miss it nor stoop to the low of stealing a Cure materia, albeit mastered, from a child. She whispered in the young girl's ear. "This is for you. Keep it safe. And keep your dad out of trouble." 

Marlene giggled and placed the materia in her pocket before running back to her father and Elmyra. She waved to Tifa as Barrett picked her up in his strong arms and boarded the Highwind behind the others. 

Reeve's attention was focused on a small group gathered nearby under an outcropping of rock. "Yuffie, Cait's share is yours. My plans don't include materia." Reeve seemed distracted as he excused himself from the rest of the group. "If you'll excuse me, I need to speak with someone." He strode off across the field. 

Tifa frowned as she watched him walk away from them and towards the Turks. She could recognize those blue suits from any distance. 

"Get your materia and let's go!" Cid bellowed from the ladder leading up to the Highwind. "I ain't gettin' no younger!" 

Yuffie looked expectantly at Cloud and Tifa who appeared to be lost in their own worlds and not paying any attention to her. Glancing between the last two Avalanche members on the field and a very impatient Cid, she shrugged and scooped up the rest of the materia into a sack. 

"You snooze, you lose." She said to herself as she ran across the field towards the Highwind. 

Cloud walked over to Tifa and pressed something flat and metal into the palm of her hand. Tifa looked in her hand to find the key to the Villa in Costa del Sol. 

"I, uh, I want you to have this." He shuffled his feet nervously. Tifa looked up and tried to meet his eyes with her own, but the Mako blue eyes shifted away. "I, uh, I'm leaving, Teef." 

She could do nothing but stare at him as he spoke the words that followed. "I have to find her. I have to make her understand. It wasn't me that did that to her. I... I.." His voice trailed off, searching for something to say. "I... I'm sorry, Teef." 

She knew that his soft apology wasn't what he was really thinking and as he grasped for the words, hiding his true feelings from her, her heart shattered. And from another time, another place, the unforgettable visage of another pair of Mako eyes, aqua colored and devastated by loss, swam into her mind. She closed her eyes against the ghostly eyes, finally understanding, finally knowing the pain he had felt then. Her fingers closed around the key to the Villa, digging into her skin, but she didn't notice the pain. 

Cloud turned and walked across the field without another word, not even noticing the missing pile of materia or the Highwind rising from the ground. 

She heard Reeve come up behind her as she watched the departure of her friends, never feeling quite so alone in her entire life. She understood the rest of them and their desire to return to their homes, but Cloud... she had thought that he was like her. Alone. She had hoped that maybe they could have made a life together. But he still carried the ghost of Aeris with him. She tried to hide the tears that fell as he walked across the field and towards the City of the Ancients. 

"Are you returning to Nibelheim?" Reeve asked her, not wanting to disturb her as they both watched Cloud walk across the field and out of her life. 

Tifa shook her head, trying to find her voice through the tears. It came out choked. "No, I have nothing left there. It hasn't been my home in a very long time." 

He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, almost afraid to touch the broken woman before him. He had watched through the eyes of Cait her relationship with the spiky haired leader of Avalanche. He had seen the heartbreak in her eyes each time Cloud had whispered Aeris' name, and how she continued on despite that, still hoping. Even now, he still wondered if that flame of hope was still alive. He had always admired her spunk and her spine. 

"Kalm then? Junon? Costa del Sol?" 

She shook her head and shrugged. "I don't know where I'm going." That much was true. Nibelheim hadn't been her home since it had been destroyed by Sephiroth all those years ago, and Kalm had never been her home and as such she didn't feel much like starting over there. Her home, or what was left of it, was buried somewhere under the dropped Sector Seven plate. 

She, like the rest of them, had been running on adrenaline and focused so much on their mission that she hadn't given any thought at all to what would happen when it was all over. She had hoped within her heart that she and Cloud… Well, that obviously wasn't going to happen now. She could do nothing but watch as his retreating form grew smaller and smaller in the distance until he had faded from her sight. She finally felt the pain of the metal key digging into the palm of her hand, but the thought of a life in the fun-loving resort town held no appeal to her. 

Reeve's voice broke into her hazy thoughts as he spoke, glancing towards the destruction behind them and then to the Turks across the field. He wasted no time in delivering the short speech that he had just given to the Turks, hoping that she would agree to stay. 

"I'm going to rebuild Midgar. Without Shinra. Without Mako reactors. Just a city. There's a mammoth task ahead of all of those who agree to help and we will need all the manpower that we can get. I'd like it if you stayed." 

She was aware of Reeve speaking and shocked that he would want her to stay. After all, what could she, a mere fighter, contribute to the rebuilding of the City of Midgar? She sighed inwardly and wondered what else she had to do. Besides, what better way to forget Cloud than to throw herself into work. It was how she had forgotten him before, when he had first left Nibelheim. She had thrown herself into training, working her body and frustrations out in learning her Planet-saving fighting moves. 

Tifa looked across the field at the shantytown and the remains of Midgar in the background. Here before her was a fight, a challenge. It was exactly what she needed. 

She glanced across the field towards the Turks and, for the briefest moment, her eyes locked with his, bitterness emanating into her even from across the expansive field. She shook it off, resolved even further to stay. Midgar was a large city, and there was a lot of work to be done. Surely they could avoid one another. There was no way she was going to allow a ghost from her past to run her off. A determined smile spread across her features as she answered Reeve's request. 

"I'd be glad to." 


	3. Two - Demons

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWO - DEMONS**

_'Hello, I know there's someone out there who can understand ... And who's feeling the same way as me ... I'm twenty-four and I've got everything to live for ... But I know now that it wasn't meant to be ... 'Cause all has been lost and all has been won ... And there's nothing left for us to save ... But now I know that I don't want to be alone today ... So if you find that you've been feeling just the same ... Call me now it's alright ... It's just the end of the world ... You need a friend in the world ... 'Cause you can't hide ... So call and I'll get right back ... If your intentions are pure ... I'm seeking a friend for the end of the world ... I've got a photograph I'll send it off today ... And you will see that I am perfectly sane ... Not for a lifetime or forever and a day ... 'Cause we know now that just won't be the case ... There will be no commitment and no confessions ... And no little secrets to keep ... No little children or houses with roses just the ... end of the world and me ... 'Cause all has been gone and all has been done ... And there's nothing left for us to say ... But we could be together as they blow it all away ... And we can share in every moment as it breaks ... Call me now it's alright ... It's just the end of the world ... You need a friend in the world ... 'Cause you can't hide ... So call and I'll get right back ... If your intentions are pure ... I'm seeking a friend for the end of the world ... (Chris Cornell: 'Preaching the End of the World')'_

Grassy Plain. Morning. 

Reno lounged against a rock, one leg sprawled out in front of him, the other loosely bent and pulled towards his chest. His appearance was unkempt as usual, sunglasses covering his eyes for once, actually doing their created task of shielding his eyes from the rays of sunlight rising over the horizon. An unlit cigarette dangled from one corner of his mouth as he fumbled in his coat pocket for his lighter. 

Elena wrinkled her nose in disgust as he found his lighter and managed to light the cigarette, despite his massive hangover from the '_The Planet is Saved_' celebration party the night before. Shinra and it's symbol city Midgar were both destroyed; Rufus, Hojo, and Sephiroth were all dead, but where there was booze, there was Reno. 

"That's a filthy habit, Reno. Why don't you quit in honor of the new Midgar?" 

Reno tilted his head to look at her. At least that's what she thought he was doing. It was hard to tell with his eyes hidden behind the sunglasses. 

"Is that supposed to be some sort of sick joke, 'Lena? Look at this place. I need this now more than ever." 

The only semblance of a home he had ever had was now just a twisted pile of rubble. Reeve had already been over to speak with them about working with him to rebuild the city. As Turks, or former Turks, none of the three- Reno, Elena, or Rude- had yet voiced a decision regarding Reeve's request. 

The man had vision. Reno wouldn't fault him that. As the head city planner under Shinra's regime, Reeve had built the city into what it had been before. Reno had no doubts that Reeve would build Midgar up again, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to be a part of that, or rather if he, Reno, former gun of Shinra, could fit into Reeve's new plan of Midgar. The slums and then Shinra... that was the only life he knew. He was a Turk, not a city planner. He had no vision beyond where the next payment of gil was going to come from. He took a long drag from his cigarette and glanced towards his long-time partner and the third member of what remained of the Turks. 

Rude currently stood a short distance away from his comrades, intently watching the exchange going on between the members of the now-former rebel group Avalanche. He watched as each of the members bid their good byes to one another before each turned and boarded the Highwind, leaving Cloud and Tifa standing on the field together, the wind created by the Highwind's massive engines blowing their hair around. 

His hands unconsciously balled into fists as he watched Cloud turn and walk away, fading further into the distance with each passing step. He continued to watch silently, only partially aware of the conversation going on behind him as Reeve walked up to the lovely Tifa Lockheart. As he watched her face light up and saw Reeve's answering smile, he didn't need to hear what they had said. He already knew what he needed to do. He turned towards his fellow Turks and stated simply, "I'm staying." 

"So am I." Elena spoke with conviction. From the minute Reeve had told them of his plans, she had decided that she would stay and help in whatever capacity she could. Midgar was her home and she hated to see it in shambles. She knew that her opinion didn't carry much weight with her two fellow Turks. Neither believed she could understand anything of their lives since she grew up on the upper plate of the old Midgar and not down in the slums as they had. But neither knew how she had finally managed to "convince" Tseng to allow her to become a Turk. She hadn't originally set out to blackmail anyone, but when good information came her way, she couldn't ignore it. Not when it would get her exactly what she had dreamed of. Besides, it wasn't her doing that one of his dalliances turned out to be the president's daughter. It also wasn't her doing that the President didn't approve of "bedroom relations" between his daughter and members of the Turks. 

Reno snuffed out the cigarette against a rock and groaned inwardly. They were a team, the three of them. Despite Elena's tendency to be a complete ditz, they were the only friends, the only family that he had. All thoughts of striking out alone were forgotten as Rude and Elena made their announcements. He had followed Rude's gaze during the time just before he had announced that he was staying and suspected that Tifa Lockhart had been a major factor in that decision. He didn't want to speculate on what Rude was thinking. 

He allowed his gaze to wander over the field to where Tifa and Reeve were standing, and for a brief moment, their eyes locked across that expanse. He felt the old anger well up deep inside of him and knew it was emanating from his very pores. It shot across the field and their eyes remained locked for what seemed an eternity as the pain came shooting back. 

She'd considered herself too good for him then. She was able to overlook that he worked for Shinra. But when she found out he was a Turk, that's when she had walked out. Right after... right after he had become certain that she had stolen his heart and entwined herself permanently into his soul. He closed his eyes in an attempt to block out the memories, but found that that action only let them come flooding back. Despite all that he had survived and all that he had seen and done as a Turk, it was still the most painful day of his life. 

_'One last try.' That's what he'd told himself as he walked into the store where she worked. He'd sat at home the last several evenings staring at a blank wall trying to will himself to forget her. It didn't work, and he knew he had to give it one last chance. Maybe she could look beyond what he was. _

_Maybe she could look beyond the destruction she had seen at that old mining town on their trip back from the Gold Saucer; that while he was officially "on vacation", Shinra guards had still deferred to him when he was spotted and that the other Turks knew him by name. _

_Maybe something in her would let her forget and just let her care for him for the man he had shown her over the last few weeks, and not to let the Turk in him bother her. It was a false hope, and while he knew that deep inside, it was still the only thing he could cling to. _

_He stood in line, waiting as she finished with the customer in front of him. Her smile instantly evaporated when she saw him. Anger flashed in her chocolate-cherry eyes as she looked at him. "I told you I didn't want to see you ever again, Reno." Her tone was cold, and the use of "Reno" instead of the usual "Nathan" cut him to the bone. _

_'One last try.' He repeated to himself again, right before speaking the words he had never spoken to any woman before. _

_"I... I love you." His eyes were filled with a pain that went straight through to his soul. He didn't care that there was a store full of customers listening to the greatest declaration he had ever made. He meant them with all his heart, but somehow he also knew that he would be rejected. The anger in her eyes told him that. It would take more than those words to put out that flame of anger._

_"You're a Turk... one of Shinra's killers..." She'd turned and run into the backroom then, tears welling in her eyes, whispering something he could just barely hear, and still wasn't sure where it had come from. "Sephiroth... Soldier... Mako Reactors... Shinra... I hate them all." _

_"Administrative Research!" He shouted lamely after her. "That's what we are... officially." He finished softy. _

_As he watched her run from him, he couldn't believe he'd said those three words. He never had before. As he watched her disappear, he vowed he'd never use them again. It hurt too fucking much. But instead of running after her, instead of telling her that he'd give it all up for her, he let her go. And he let himself fall into the abyss._

His eyes snapped open and the vision disappeared, but she was still there now, standing across the field from him. He could sense her defiance as he let his eyes bore into her, in hopes of filling her with the pain and hatred that he felt for her. For causing him so much pain. No one had before and no one ever would again. Even the hard life in the slums before he had joined Shinra's Soldier program, and ultimately the Turks, was no match for the pain he felt whenever he thought about her. And over the last four years he'd let the wound fester inside. 

He knew that he could have left the Turks and given it all up for her. He still wondered to this day if it would've made a difference. But in the end, he took the coward's road and stayed with Shinra; with the ones that had saved him from the slums and destroyed her life. But now all of that was gone. All that remained was a smoldering city, three Turks, and a lone Shinra executive with dreams of a new Midgar who had asked them to help. 

Sanity screamed at him to get away from there, away from Midgar, away from her, but it was not Sanity's day to decide. Loyalty dictated that he stay and contribute something to the new city that Reeve was determined to create. 

He stood and joined his fellow Turks, smirking to cover his reluctance at staying to rebuild Midgar. The only silver lining that he could see was that the majority of Avalanche apparently wouldn't be there. Just Tifa. He wasn't sure what she passionately despised him for more- the dropping of the Sector Seven plate on her home and friends or for not telling her he was a Turk before he had taken the last remnant of her innocence. He smirked even broader remembering that unforgettable week in Costa del Sol with her. However, he also knew that one person would be easier to avoid than the whole rebel bunch of them. And honestly, how hard could it be to avoid her? Midgar was a big place and it **all** had to be cleaned up. Right? 

"Can't very well split up the mighty Turks, can we?" Reno casually draped an arm around the shoulders of each of his two friends. "Count me in too." 

Rude glanced across the field at Tifa once more before giving Reno a look that said that announcing his intention to stay was the strangest thing he had ever done.


	4. Three - Blessed Hope

_*****_

**CHAPTER THREE – BLESSED HOPE**

_'If you've got something to say ... Why don't you say it ... If you've got something to give ... Why don't you give it to me ... Day after day I have to say it ... We're moving further from heaven ... And closer to the deep blue see ... 'Cause I have no secrets from you ... And I have nothing left to hide ... And I'm open to all your questions ... Why can't you reach inside ... Like I have ... And all those games you play ... Don't tell me how a man should be ... Some would say if you knew ... You wouldn't be here with me ... I still love you ... But I guess it's time to let you be ... 'Cause I have no secrets from you ... And I have nothing left to hide ... And I'm so tired of all these questions ... 'Cause maybe you just changed your mind ... Like I have When I was at your doorstep ... You told me to look around ... Said come in ... You and your heart sit down ... But you better watch your step ... 'Cause you're not far from the ground And one fine day this all falls down ... Like I have ... If you've got something to say ... Why don't you say it ... If you've got something to give ... Why don't you give it to me ... Day after day I have to say it ... If we've got something to save ... Why don't we save it? (George Michael : 'Something to Save')'_

Grassy Plain. Afternoon. 

Reeve stood on an outcropping of rock and, in a voice laced with hope and confidence, addressed the displaced populace of Midgar assembled before him. 

"Shinra is dead. Midgar, it's symbol city, lies behind us in destruction. We stand here together, residents of the slums and of the plates, together for the first time since the rise of Shinra. That city behind us is the Midgar of blind ambition, of Shinra's overwhelming greed." 

Reeve paused to look over the people who assembled before him enthralled with his carefully spoken words. He'd never considered himself more than just a 'nice guy', and he was certain that he wasn't a politician, but he had the dream of a new Midgar and the Turks behind him. He wasn't planning on using them to exterminate any dissent, but rather for their reputation. 

What was left of Shinra was in shambles; the Shinra building itself was a toppled mass of metal, broken wood, and glass. There was no order to Midgar now. There were scattered remains of Solder, mostly third class, and plenty of Shinra guards around to be used as the foundation for a new security force. With the Turks behind him, he was certain the rest of Soldier's remnants would soon follow. 

"I propose a new Midgar, one without plates. One where all can look up and see the blue sky and the stars at night. Where our children can play in fields of green grass. It will take time for grass to grow again here, but in time, without the Mako reactors gobbling up the Lifestream, plants will grow again. Grass will grow again." 

It was true. Already in small places on the outskirts of what had been Midgar, new life was beginning to sprout. It was as though the Planet herself was welcoming them. Although, Reeve suspected that it was the high concentration of Lifestream that had gathered here to help Holy defeat Meteor. Regardless of the reason, it was refreshing to see new life sprouting on the barren land that the old Midgar was built upon. 

As for himself, he had spent countless hours at his desk doodling and sketching **his** vision of Midgar when he was supposed to be planning and developing Shinra's version of reality, sorted by class and separated by huge metal plates from one another, leaving the poor trapped in a world without sunlight and the wealthy without the Planet at their feet. He wondered sometimes which group was truly the more unfortunate. But in the end, it seemed that the Planet had spoken, rendering her decision with absolute authority on the very question that often kept him awake at night. 

The Planet had chosen a group from the slums, from the people who lived and toiled on her soil, to save her from the self-proclaimed gods who considered themselves too good to set foot on the very soil that had birthed them. She had further chosen others who walked the soil, and not the metal plates, as her Saviors. 

She chose the pilot, who sacrificed his dream to save her, and the red beast, guardian of the people who kept her flame alive. She chose the dark one, victim of unspeakable cruelties at the hands of the evil madman who created the one who sought to destroy her. She chose the former Soldier, infused with her goodness, twisted by the cells of the alien beast, and she chose the Cetra, who could hear her cries of anguish, and who gave her own life to save her mother Planet. She chose the young ninja, vibrant and able to lift the tools needed from unsuspecting passerby and Shinra troops, and the coal miner, who had worked in the Planet, and who felt the need to atone for his part in feeding the raging corporation's ambitions. She chose the fighter, who had survived wounds inflicted by the Destroyer upon his descent into madness. And she chose the unsuspecting city planner, who had once fled the slums of Midgar to feed his starving mind, studying other cities, before returning to his own city with the false hope that he could make a difference in a city controlled by the almighty Shinra. But instead of making a difference he had been sucked into the ambitions of the corporation and used as just another of their seemingly unlimited puppets. 

But now, here he stood, in front of the masses of people displaced by that same greedy corporate behemoth. Its monumental city and towering palace of corporate greed smoldered behind the mass of humanity, destroyed by the Planet's own defense mechanisms. She had fought back, and Shinra had paid for its sins. 

The people before him had a new chance. A chance to reclaim what the Planet had intended for her people. The new Midgar would have no plates, no Mako energy. It was a monumental task, but as he looked out over the people assembled before him, their individuality lost as their faces blended into the sea of humanity of which that they were all part, he knew that they could do it. The cheer that rose from the crowd gave him the strength that he needed to continue. 

Reeve stood there, basking in relief as the people of Midgar began chanting his name in support. He quieted them with a gesture of his hands and continued his speech, outlining more specific details of his plan to begin reconstruction. Many of the specifics he was not certain of, but right now they needed the baby steps of cleaning up the wreckage and searching for any possible survivors remaining from the devastation. 

"All sectors of Midgar suffered damage. Sectors 2. 3, 4, and 7 sustained the most damage while Sectors 1, 5, 6, and 8 are still inhabitable. With the shelter here and the remaining shelter in those sectors, we should have enough resources to begin clearing away the rubble and rebuilding." 

He knew his next words would be unpopular with at least half of those that stood near him on the makeshift platform. He wasn't intending for it to be punishment, but instead a symbolic step of cleansing. Tackling the destruction wrought by Shinra, and it had been their doing, not that of Avalanche. But he knew it probably wouldn't be seen that way as he glanced towards the Turks standing on one side of him and Tifa standing on the other, hostility passing between the two sides with him standing in the middle. For whatever reason they had all agreed to stay, and although he knew that it wouldn't be easy getting the two factions to cooperate, he was grateful to them all for staying. 

"We'll start with clearing away the debris of the first sector to fall: Sector Seven." 

Tifa fainted dead away at Reeve's announcement.


	5. Interlude One - Impatience

_*****_

**INTERLUDE ONE - IMPATIENCE**

_'Don't ask me, what you know is true ... Don't have to tell you, I love your precious heart ... I, I was standing ... You were there, two worlds collided ... And they could never tear us apart ... We could live for a thousand years ... But if I hurt you I'd make wine from your tears ... I told you that we could fly ... 'Cause we all have wings but some of us don't know why ... I, I was standing ... You were there, two worlds collided ... And they could never ever tear us apart ... I (don't ask me) I was standing (you know is true) ... You were there (worlds collided) two worlds collided (we're shining through) ... And they could never tear us apart ... You (don't ask me) you were standing (you know is true) ... I was there (worlds collided) two worlds collided (we're shining through) .. And they could never tear us apart ... I, I was standing, you were there (INXS: 'Never Tear Us Apart')'_

He opened the front door to find it quiet in the high-rise condominium. Their dream was to own a home in the ever growing suburbs of the new Midgar, but responsibility to the city came first right now. He placed his briefcase down near the door and rifled through the stack of mail left sitting on the console table. 

He inhaled the scent of fresh flowers sitting next to the mail on the table. She always managed to keep flowers on that table in a welcome to all that came to visit. 

Climbing the stairs to the second level, he could hear her voice softly singing a tune. He found her sitting in the nursery, in the rocking chair that they had picked out together, singing to the child that was still safely encased in her womb. 

She looked up upon sensing his presence in the doorway and smiled. She placed her hands on her swollen abdomen suddenly, a move she had been doing for the past several months, but it never failed to shock him, and that was only getting greater the closer she came to her due date. 

He rushed to her side, and dropped to his knees in front of her. 

"Are you alright? Is it time?" A thousand thoughts rushed through his head as he readied himself to spring into action. Despite his terror at becoming a father, he was proud and determined to do the best job that he could. 

She laughed softly. "No, not yet. He was just moving around." She placed his hand under hers. "He's an active one." Her eyes glinted mischievously. "Just like his father." 

She had been convinced from the moment they found out she was expecting that it was a boy. She had turned down the doctor's offers of telling them the baby's gender, saying that all she needed to know was that their son was healthy. 

"You're still certain we're having a boy?" He asked, teasingly. He had long ago given up trying to understand the mystery of 'women's' intuition' 

"Absolutely." 

He laid his head against her stomach, his hands resting next to his head. The baby kicked again. He laughed as his child's foot beat against his own ear. 

"Okay, okay. I'm hungry too." He smiled up at his wife. "Let's go to dinner." 

She laughed at him as he smiled up at her. "Food! Is that all you ever think about?" 

He grinned wolfishly back at her. "Since the doctor won't let me indulge in my other favorite pastime, I have to." 

His wife swatted him playfully and pushed him away from her as she rose from the rocking chair. Unfortunately, her added girth of late made her movements slower and he easily caught her and pulled her into an embrace. 

The baby kicked him again as he stood there, wrapped up in her arms. His stomach growled, reminding him of why she'd gotten up from the chair. In one fluid movement he had her swept off her feet and cradled in his arms. She hadn't gained much weight, just the protrusion that threw off her normal center of gravity. 

She laughed as she was unexpectedly carried out the door. "You aren't planning on walking into the restaurant like this, are you?" 

"I just might." 

"You are impossible!" She responded, a red flush of embarrassment at the thought of being carried into their favorite restaurant creeping onto her cheeks. 

"Impossibly sexy, but you love me." He silenced her protests with a kiss and carried her out the door of their home. 


	6. Four - Homecoming

_*****_

**CHAPTER FOUR - HOMECOMING**

_'And you bring me to my knees ... All this time that I could beg you please ... All the times that I felt insecure ... And I leave my burdens at the door ... I'm on the outside ... I'm looking in ... I can see through you ... See your true colors ... Inside you're ugly ... Ugly like me ... I can see through you ... See to the real you ... All this time that I felt like this won't end ... Was for you ... And I taste what I could never have ... It's from you ... All those times that I tried ... My intentions ... Full of pride ... And I waste more time than anyone ... I'm on the outside ... I'm looking in ... I can see through you ... See your true colors ... Cause inside you're ugly ... Ugly like me ... I can see through you ... See to the real you ... All the times that I cried ... All this wasting ... It's all inside ... And I feel all this pain ... Stuffed it down ... It's back again ... And I lie here in bed ... All alone ... I can't mend what I feel ... Tomorrow will be okay ... I'm on the outside ... I'm looking in ... I can see through you ... See your true colors ... Inside you're ugly ... Ugly like me ... I can see through you ... See to the real you ... (Staind: 'Outside')'_

Midgar. Sector Seven Rubble. Afternoon. 

Acrid smoke accosted her nose as she stepped through the piles of rubble of what was once Sector Seven. She moved aside pieces of jagged metal and torn boards, trying to avoid getting cuts and splinters as best as she could, thinking that she really needed to find some clothing that would offer her better protection from the hazards. 

Her normal white tank and black shorts allowed her to fight easily, but did little to protect her from the destruction she now worked to remove. The rest of her clothing as well as the remainder of her belongs lay somewhere crushed under the pile of rubble that was Sector Seven. She hoped that there would be something left from Seventh Heaven, preferably clothing, that she could salvage. Elena had offered her some of her clothes, but the female Turk was of a much slighter build, and even the offered pair of loose-cut jeans had been too confining. 

She hadn't liked being assigned to Sector Seven's cleanup, but Reeve had insisted, telling her that it would give her much needed closure and allow her to put to rest some of the demons that haunted her. So far all she'd managed was to hold back the tears as pile after pile of rubble was removed. They'd found very few bodies and it seemed, thankfully, that most of the residents of the sector had gotten out in time. 

The bodies of her Avalanche friends, Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie, had yet to be recovered, but crews had just reached the section of rubble that had once been the actual plate support. She dreaded the inevitability of that discovery. 

Tifa only saw one benefit in this whole experience and that was that Reno had been assigned to Sector Seven as well. That was fitting, she thought, for him to face first hand the destruction he had wrought onto her former home. 

She glanced over at him to find him watching her. She couldn't read his thoughts, but she was sure they weren't pleasant. Reno had been ridiculing her for several days, ever since she had fainted at Reeve's announcement of starting with Sector Seven. 

She didn't know why she'd fainted out there on the plain. Ever since her mother had died, she'd tried to not show weakness. Her trainer, the martial arts master Zangan, had always taught her to be strong and never let her opponents see or sense weakness in her. That was advice that she strove to live by and had gotten her out of the battles with Jenova, Sephiroth, and other creatures alive. But, much to her embarrassment, the mere mention of returning to the devastation that was her old home in Midgar had laid her out cold on the ground with her former enemies huddled around her trying to revive her. Even Reno had seemed almost concerned at the time, but once it was evident that she would survive, he'd instantly started to taunt her. 

Reno glanced over to find that Tifa had shot him another of those dagger looks. He didn't have to wonder what she was thinking. He knew that she was looking around at the destruction and remembering how he had been the one to set the detonator that ultimately collapsed the plate onto this sector. 

But he was certain that she didn't understand that he was struck by the sheer irony of the situation. He stood in the midst of the rubble of what he had always thought was a pitiful excuse for a sector, amazed at the destruction. It was the same devastation that he had caused when he'd set the detonator on the pillar support for the massive metal plate that had once rested far above their heads. He shook his head to clear his mind of the thoughts that came. 

He muttered to himself. "No, I was only following orders." He returned to cleaning, a sharp pang of something hitting him sharply each time he unearthed yet more remains of lives that lived there. A child's toy, shards of dishware, crushed furniture. All remnants of life that had been abandoned, if not lost, when the upper plate fell. 

If he didn't know better, he would say that sharp pang was remorse, but that couldn't be. He, Reno of the Turks, didn't feel that. He'd been conditioned to not feel emotion. To do whatever it took without feeling. He was a highly trained member of Shinra's Elite, and he most certainly didn't have remorse. Following orders was supposed to mean that he didn't have to feel the pain. 

"Fuck. I've had enough of this." He tossed down the shovel he'd been carrying and, pulling off the leather workman's gloves he wore, he strode in her direction. Without a word, he tossed the gloves angrily on the ground at her feet and started to walk away. 

"Just where do you think you're going, Reno?" She asked sharply as his gloves landed at her feet. 

"Anywhere but here. I've had enough of this." 

"You're too good to help clean up the mess you created?" Her tone was accusatory, cutting him no slack. 

"I was **ordered** by Shinra to drop that plate in retaliation for the Reactors **you** and your Rebel friends destroyed!" 

"It… it was for the Planet, Reno. Shinra was killing it." Tears glistened in the corners of her eyes, threatening to spill over. "And… Shinra killed my family." 

Reno rolled his eyes in disgust. "Shinra killed a lot of people's families! You didn't see them all going out and destroying the city, do you? Your actions were acts of terrorism. The Turks were ordered to 'take care of the problem'. And we did. Effectively." 

"Yes, the Turks are very **effective** at taking care of problems, aren't they, Reno?" She spoke softly, but anger punctuated every word. "Burn a town, drop several thousand tons of metal onto a Sector full of innocents, destroy a reactor, squash the resistance by any means necessary." 

Something inside him snapped at her words and he spun on his heel, his eyes flashing with anger he didn't truly know was inside him. "Fuck you! Look at your hands, Ms. High and Mighty. Their fucking blood is on your hands as sure as it is on mine." 

'_Burn a town…_' Her words echoed in his head as he yelled at her. He knew what town she'd meant, but he hadn't been there. They'd been coming back from the Gold Saucer when they had seen the smoke in the distance and had been rerouted by Shinra forces around the blazing inferno that had been North Corel. That's when the Shinra guards had recognized him as a member of Shinra's Turks. That's where she had discovered the truth of who he was. Not the nice guy Nathan that she had been dating and had let make love to her, but instead the despicable, rotten Reno of the Turks. And from that moment on, she had damned him to Hell and left him standing there amidst the latest in Shinra's long line of destruction as she returned home to Midgar without him. 

He turned to walk away, his hands balled into fists, holding them tight to his sides, damning the memories, damning them for making him feel, and for making him weak. As he left to find something to drown his anger in he couldn't resist leaving her with one parting shot. 

"I didn't burn Corel, Tifa. Maybe you forgot that you were screaming my name in ecstasy when that rebellion happened." 

If looks could kill, Reno would've been a goner from the look of sheer hatred that Tifa shot him for his parting comments. 

***** 

Elena and Rude stood silently watching the latest in what was becoming a long string of arguments between Tifa and Reno. Although they couldn't hear what was being said, the body language of the combatants said that they weren't exactly having a nice cup of tea and discussing the weather. 

"We have to do something. Those kinds of fights aren't good for morale." Elena's brow furrowed in concern as she watched Reno storm away. 

Rude grunted. It really wasn't any of their business that those two couldn't get along. He knew that both of them had a lot of anger and pent-up feelings about more than just the destruction of Midgar and Sector Seven. He wondered if Reeve had been thinking clearly when he had announced that Sector Seven would be the first sector to be cleared out. But then again, Rude was certain that Reeve didn't know that the history of Reno and Tifa went way beyond the destruction of Sector Seven. 

"Although, at the rate they're going, they'll end up either dead or in bed together." Elena glanced sideways at Rude, looking for his reaction to her last comment. She knew that, for whatever reason, Rude harbored a soft spot for the fiery Tifa. She suspected that had been a major factor in Rude's decision to stay, but she wasn't going to torment Rude about his "crush". She figured that Reno did enough of that for the both of them. What she didn't know was how much of a sore spot Tifa was for Reno and that, other than a couple of references to Tifa during the Turks' trip to Gongaga several weeks before, neither had brought up her name to the other. 

Rude nodded. "You talk to Tifa. I'll take Reno."

Elena pouted. "Why do I have to talk to her?" 

Rude stared silently at her for a moment through his dark sunglasses. After a barely perceptible movement of his head, she realized he had just given her the once-over. "Because you're a girl."


	7. Five - Ultimatum

_*****_

**CHAPTER FIVE - ULTIMATUM**

_'Lately I've been skeptical ... Silent when I would used to speak ... Distant from all around me who witness me fail and become weak ... Life is overwhelming ... Heavy is the head that wears the crown ... I'd love to be the one to disappoint you when I don't fall down ... But you don't understand when I'm attempting to explain ... because you know it all ... and I guess things will never change ... but you might need my hand when falling in your hole ... Your disposition I'll remember when I'm letting go of ... you and me we're through and ... rearranged ... It seems that your not satisfied ... There's too much on your mind ... So you leave and I can't believe all the bullshit that I find... You're no good for me ... Thank God its over ... You make believe that nothing is wrong until you're cryin' ... You make believe life is so long until you're dyin' ... You make believe that nothing is wrong until you're cryin' … (Limp Bizkit: 'Rearranged')_

Mayor's Tent. Shantytown. Afternoon. 

Tifa burst into the tent that was serving as Reeve's temporary office during the clean-up efforts. 

"I cannot work with him. He is stubborn, mean, and impossible." She blurted out angrily, her face red with rage from the latest confrontation with Reno. "He won't let go of the past and continues to insist on blaming **me** for the destruction of Midgar. Put me in charge somewhere else. Sector Two, Wall Market, the Shinra building, anywhere but where Reno is!" 

"I'm not working with that rebel bitch anymore!" Reno stormed into the tent. "She's impossible, rude, and insists on blaming me for the destruction of Midgar." 

"Do you insist on following me everywhere I go?" Tifa demanded of Reno. "Even into the office of the mayor?" 

"When your only purpose for being here is to bitch and run my good name further through the fucking mud, yes." He lounged against a tall cabinet that had been moved into the tent to hold files and supplies. 

Tifa snorted. "You don't have a good name, Reno!" 

Reeve looked up calmly, trying to keep them both from seeing the bemused expression on his face. The stack of sketches and reports that he had been sifting through were momentarily forgotten. Although he was getting tired of being the parent that had to mediate their fights, he was glad to see a passion for something in both of them. He'd watched, through the eyes of Cait Sith, Tifa's increasing despondence over Cloud; and in all his time with Shinra, he'd never seen Reno show any passion for anything, even the large amounts of gil Shinra paid to the Turks for jobs well done. 

If they both would only channel that passion into working harder to rebuilding Midgar and forget about squabbling over the past, it would make things so much more bearable for everyone. He'd received countless reports and complaints of their bitter arguments from the work crews through Rude and Elena. Maybe now was the time to force them to reach a truce. 

"Tifa. Reno." He looked from one to the other, choosing his words carefully. "There is a long journey of rebuilding ahead of us. I would greatly appreciate it if you could both put your differences behind you. I am not reassigning either one of you. You either work together or you kill one another." 

"Don't give me that choice," Reno muttered under his breath. 

Tifa gave Reno a quick once-over and flexed her fingers, encased in her fighter's gloves. "I'd mop the floor with you, coward." 

Reno's eyes flashed in challenge as he moved away from the cabinet and got in her face, staring her eye to eye, nose to nose. He'd never intentionally hurt a woman physically, and he wasn't about to start now, even though she was pushing him closer and closer to the edge. Even in their battle on the plate, he'd tried to avoid hitting her, instead focusing on pulverizing Strife and Wallace. Despite that, he wasn't going to tell her that he would hate himself if he ever laid a hand on **any** woman, including her high-and-mightiness. 

"I'd like to see you try, Ms. High and Mighty." He whipped out his electro-mag rod and took a defensive stance. He hissed at her, too low for Reeve to hear, "I may have fucked you once, but I'm not above killing you now." Even before the words had escaped from his lips, he felt her icy gaze on him, and knew that he'd live to regret them. Maybe. 

"Stop!" Reeve's voice punctured the air, stopping both combatants before they could begin their fight. He stepped between them. "I will **not** have two of my best people at each others' throats over this. The past is in the past. Shinra is dead. The old Midgar is dead." 

Reeve turned from one to the other and with a look that neither one of them had ever seen on Reeve's face before he laid it all out before them. 

"You two **will **work together. You will put these differences behind you. If you continue to squabble, I will put both of you in charge of cleaning up the old Shinra building." 

Tifa shuddered at both Reno's last words and at the thought of returning to the horrors that she was certain now roamed in the toppled remains of the old Shinra building. With the building in shambles and the containment safeties in Professor Hojo's former lab presumably destroyed, she hated to even **think** about what horrific creatures might now be roaming both the remains of the actual building and the surrounding area. 

Reno noticed her shudder and smirked. "Ms. High and Mighty can't fight without her friends and her materia?" He was back to his usual sarcastic self, knowing he was under the protection of Reeve and that if she tried to kill him now, they'd end up in the Shinra building together, and it was quite obvious that she didn't want that to happen. 

"You never faced the Mako and Jenova enhanced demons Hojo created and unleashed." Tifa shivered, remembering some of the grotesquely mutilated creatures Avalanche encountered during their mission. "But I could still kick your scrawny ass any day, Reno." 

Reno scoffed at her. "I encountered that freak Valentine that you insisted on traveling with. He should've been kept in his coffin as Hojo intended." 

"Go to Hell, Reno." She shot back as she turned and walked out, straightening her back to hide the fact that she was shaking, not from fear, but from the sensory overload that his nearness to her a few minutes before had generated. And from the hateful words that had cut her straight to her heart. 

Reno shrugged as she departed, apparently not affected at being close to her. Trying to look at his backside, he turned to Reeve. "My ass isn't really scrawny, is it?"


	8. Six - Camaraderie

_*****_

**CHAPTER SIX - CAMARADERIE **

_'People living their lives for you on TV ... They say they're better than you and you agree ... Another burger, another hot dog, some fries ... A wish in the well, hope your health don't go to hell, well ... Another doctor's bill, another lawyer's bill ... Another cute cheap thrill ... You know you love him if you put him in your will ... Who will save your soul when it comes to the flower ... Who will save your soul after all the lies that you told, boy ... Who will save your soul if you won't save your own? ... We try to hustle them, try to bustle them, try to cuss them ... The cops want someone to bust down on Orleans Avenue ... Another day, another dollar, another war, another tower ... Went up to where the homeless had their homes ... So we pray to as many gods are there are flowers ... But we call religion our friend ... We're so worried about saving our souls ... Afraid that God will take His toll ... That we forget to begin ... Some are walking, some are talking, some are stalking their kill ... You get social security, but that don't pay your bills ... There are addictions to feed and there are mouths to pay ... So you bargain with the Devil, say you're ok for today, ... You say that you love them, take their money and run ... Say, it's been swell, sweetheart, but it was just one of those things ... Those flings, those strings you've got to cut, ... So get out on the streets, girls, and bust your butts ...(Jewel: 'Who Will Save Your Soul')'_

The Slums. Midgar. Afternoon. 

Elena kicked at a loose pebble that had previously been sitting quietly on the ground. She walked without any real purpose out of the wreckage of Sector Seven. She had no idea where she was going, partially because she was feeling lost emotionally and partially because she was physically lost. She had never spent much time in the slums growing up. She could've told anyone directions on the upper plate, but down below with the Planet beneath her feet, she was completely disoriented. 

She was mad at Rude for telling her she should talk to Tifa. What was she supposed to say to someone she had once considered an enemy for no reason other than that it was what Shinra said to do? She felt like a traitor to her only two friends just thinking about it. 

She paused at the ruined playground and looked at the shrapnel from the Sector Seven explosion and the subsequent Weapon and Meteor attacks forming misshapen whiskers on the cat slide. She wondered of the children who had enjoyed that slide and the swings that now dangled, broken, from their moorings, unusable and purposeless. She closed her eyes for a moment and remembered back to her own childhood, trying to recall times spent in a playground. The ghosts of children who had played here filled her senses with their cries of delight. She frowned, unable to recall any of her own cries of delight, unable to recall any happy times in the playgrounds on the Plate. 

Her childhood hadn't been unhappy or unfulfilled, being filled with birthday parties and pretty pink dresses with lace and ruffles. A life of nannies and play dates with the children of other Shinra executives, as her father had been. Vacations in Costa del Sol, the perfect picture of the perfect Midgar family, but no memories of playing, carefree and shameless, in a playground such as this. 

She sighed as she moved on past the ruined playground. She avoided Wall Market, not wishing to find Reno or Rude right now. Even though the popular, but seedy neighborhood hadn't fared much better than the other areas, Wall Market still boasted its great bar. The bar owner had somehow ferreted away a generator powered by something other than the now-defunct Mako and was busy keeping his business afloat. Reno and Rude were more than happy to oblige him, and the former Turks could often still be found there, trying to drink one another under the table 

She'd been working in the ruins of Sector Seven for the past few weeks, thinking that the desolation and ramshackle appearance of the buildings they had uncovered was due to the destruction caused by the fall of the plate. She wasn't prepared to find that same ramshackle, haphazard look to the buildings as she wandered through the rough-cut opening to Sector Five. Sector Six had suffered heavy damage during the attacks, but the buildings still stood amongst the rubble, even though most looked as if the slightest gust of wind would blow them over. 

Elena shook her head as she moved on, shocked that people actually lived like this. That they could make their homes in whatever they could find- corrugated metal, sheet metal scavenged from old cars, trailers, and motor homes, even an old pipe. 

She stopped, awestruck as the visage of the old church came into view, a large hole in its roof, the intricate stained glass of the windows nearly all broken out, but still looking regal in its neglected splendor. An aura of comfort emanated from its tired structure. She was drawn closer to it, as if not being moved by her own volition, but by some greater force. She stood in the arched doorway for a moment, taking in the sight of the interior that was in almost the same amount of disarray as the exterior. She was shocked to find in the center of the floor, where the floorboards had rotted away, a flowerbed. 

It was so crazy. Amidst all that destruction. A perfect, blooming, flowerbed. 

And it was in that very church, kneeling by that same flowerbed, that Elena found Tifa. She didn't want to bother her, seeing that she seemed absorbed in the flowerbed, but knowing that she couldn't just leave. Something deeper compelled her to stay. 

Steeling her resolve, she walked over to the other woman. She had no idea what to say, but hoped that whatever force had guided her to this place would also put the right words in her mouth. 

"Have I ever thanked you?" Elena wasn't sure why she had asked that question, but she shrugged inwardly, letting herself be guided. 

Tifa looked up, startled to have her quiet time in Aeris' church interrupted. Despite Cloud's feelings for the other woman, Tifa and Aeris had been friends, and it wasn't really Aeris' fault that Cloud was such a jerk. She was even more shocked to find that the person that dared to interrupt her was Elena. "For what?" 

"For allowing me the opportunity to join the Turks." 

Tifa gave the other woman a strange look. "How did I help you join the Turks?" Elena had to be crazy. That was the only explanation for this strange conversation. 

Elena smiled shyly. "You kicked Reno's ass on the plate." She looked around the building and blushed. "Oops. Maybe I shouldn't be profane in a church?" 

Tifa smirked in spite of herself and her surroundings. "Even though the coward ran off before we could finish the job." Tifa too blushed, realizing what she was saying. "Maybe I shouldn't be talking of killing someone in a church." 

Elena laughed softly, amazed to find even the smallest ledge of common ground that she and Tifa could, and actually were, standing on. 

"I'm sorry if I've interrupted you." Elena apologized, her upper plate manners suddenly remembered. 

"No, it's okay." Tifa replied, not sure why she suddenly didn't mind being interrupted by this former Turk, her former enemy. "I just come here to-" 

'_To what?_' She thought. '_To be closer to Aeris? To think, to meditate, to get away... to be with a friend?_' 

"I just come here because I feel safe here." Tifa smiled shyly. "This is Aeris' church and these are her flowers." 

In truth, Tifa went there to talk to Aeris, but she wasn't ready to admit that to Elena. She was trying to make sense of everything around her, and talking to her Cetra friend, despite that Tifa didn't know if Aeris really heard her or not, helped. Sometimes she thought that she could see Aeris kneeling there with her tending to her beloved flowerbed, but Tifa was certain that was only her imagination playing tricks on her. Tending to the flowers helped put things into perspective. And it was helping her to forget Cloud Strife. Maybe Aeris really was the one that Cloud had belonged with. 

Elena was surprised by Tifa's admission. "You don't hate her?" Reeve had mentioned during one of their many conversations that Cloud had left when the other members of Avalanche had, headed to the City of the Ancients because of his love for Aeris. 

Tifa shook her head. "No, it wasn't her fault. How can you hate someone with such a ready smile and caring nature?" 

Elena had no answer to dispute her with. "I guess you can't." She looked at Tifa with a piercing gaze, one that she didn't know she possessed. "Like you for instance." 

Tifa was taken aback for a moment. "Me? What do you mean?" 

"We were enemies once, but I never really hated you. I secretly admired you. All of you. Besides," Elena smirked wryly, "when you really look at it, we were all fighting for the same thing." 

Tifa looked at Elena strangely. "We weren't on the same side. How could we all be fighting for the same thing?" 

Elena smiled. "We were all fighting for ourselves. For whatever personal gain, whether it be material or psychological. The rest... the Planet, Shinra, it was all secondary." Elena leaned back, supporting her weight on her elbows and looking up through the hole in the roof of the church, through which an ethereal light shone onto the flowers below. 

Tifa looked around her at the church. "These slums, the bar... it's all I had... after Nibelheim..." She too looked up through the hole in the roof, seeing the haze of the fires, though now contained, smoldering in other sectors wafting in with the crazy ethereal light that permeated this haven. "... And now... now I don't even have that... and everyone blames me for the destruction." She placed her head in her hands, willing herself not the let the sobs that threatened to wrack her body escape. "But I never... I never blew up the reactors." 

Reno's hateful words returned to haunt her, his voice mocking as it resounded through her mind. _'Look at your hands, Ms. High and Mighty. Their fucking blood is on your hands as sure as it is on mine_._'_ She hadn't realized until that moment how deeply Reno's words had wounded her. She never thought that it was her fault. That she could take the blame for it. Not when she was only fighting to hold onto the last shred of personal dignity that she had left. She never thought to think that his anger wasn't directed at her over the reactors. 

Elena was at a loss. She had never had many friends growing up, and female friends were even fewer and far between. She was afraid to touch the other woman, afraid of her reaction. They had been enemies after all. But Elena had reconciled herself to putting the past behind her and moving on to the future. Shinra was dead and she was fully behind Reeve and his plans for the new Midgar. She finally gathered up some courage and placed a hand comfortingly on the younger woman's shoulder. 

"No one blames you." 

"Reno does." Tifa stated sadly, not sure why she was upset over him. Maybe it was the fact that he hated her, that he was always rubbing her nose in the destruction. Or maybe it was because she had let herself get close to him in the past only to find out he was a part of the Shinra Elite. She wasn't ready to tell Elena about their past. It just didn't seem like the right thing to do at the moment, even though she was still shaking over their earlier encounter in Reeve's makeshift office. '_I may have fucked you once, but I'm not above killing you now_.' It had brought back so many memories when he had gotten in her face with his threats. It hadn't been like he had said. She could remember that warm night in Costa del Sol so clearly… 

_He came up behind her in their room where she was standing in front of the mirror brushing out her long hair, carefully working out the tangles from a day at the beach. She still wore only the red bikini that had been driving him wild all day. She had been self-conscious in it earlier, worried about the scar on her chest. He had proclaimed it "barely noticeable", which it was, and carted her off towards the beach.   
  
She saw him come up behind her in the mirror before she felt the warmth of his bare chest pressing against her back and his arms wrapping around her slender waist. He kissed her neck and moved his lips down to her shoulder. When he felt her stiffen slightly he whispered. _

_'If you want me to stop, I will."   
  
She shook her head to tell him that she didn't want him to stop. After spending a day at the beach with him, away from Midgar, she had relaxed around him, and felt a lot more comfortable just being with him. She didn't want him to ever stop kissing and touching her. _

_"No, it's all right. I want you to."_

Tifa mentally shook off the memories and forcefully chided herself for allowing that to resurface as she realized that Elena was speaking. 

Elena looked around her, afraid to hesitate before answering, but knowing that she had to choose her words carefully. While she really wanted to say _'Reno's a dumbass'_, she knew she couldn't voice that sentiment, not here, and not now. How she wished for Reeve's tactful way of phrasing things at this moment. "Reno... Reno hasn't come to terms with everything yet." 

"Have you?" 

"I'm trying. I'm here, aren't I?" Elena paused for a moment to think. "I'm dedicated to helping rebuild Midgar. For Reeve, for myself, for the people, for my children, for all of our futures." She was having trouble grasping the right words to say. 

"So am I." Tifa smiled a little through the tears. "I didn't really have anywhere else to go, and it was Midgar that became my home after... after my parents died." Tifa tried not to shudder, remembering the fire and Sephiroth's blade cutting short her father's life. 

"Midgar has always been my home." Elena spoke softly, finally finding what she felt were the right words. "And I can't imagine living anywhere else." 

Tifa nodded. "Nibelheim is no longer my home. It's become nothing but another in Shinra's long list of deceptions. But Midgar is our second chance, and I've decided to try. For Reeve's sake and the sake of Midgar. If I have to completely avoid Reno, I will. At least I hope I can." Tifa laughed softly. "But at least I'll see him coming. That flame on his head is hard to miss." 

Elena laughed along with Tifa, feeling almost a pang of guilt at laughing at her friend, but it was hard not to laugh at the obvious, and Reno's fiery red hair was extremely obvious.

As Elena laughed with her, Tifa realized that somewhere in all of this mess she and Elena had broken the ice between them and managed to plant the first seeds of friendship.


	9. Seven - Insanity

_*****_

**CHAPTER SEVEN - INSANITY**

_'I cannot take this anymore ... Saying everything I've said before ... All these words, they make no sense ... I've found bliss in ignorance ... Less I hear, the less you say ... You'll find that out anyway ... Just like before ... Everything you say to me ... Take's me one step closer to the edge ... And I'm about to break ... I need a little room to pray ... 'Cause I'm one step closer to the edge ... And I'm about to break ... I've found the answers aren't so clear ... Wish I could find a way to disappear ... All these thoughts. they make no sense ... I've found bliss in ignorance ... Nothing seems to go away ... Over and over again ... Just like before ... Everything you say to me ... Take's me one step closer to the edge ... And I'm about to break ... I need a little room to pray ... 'Cause I'm one step closer to the edge ... And I'm about to break ... Shut up when I'm talking to you! ... Shut up! ... I'm about to break ... (Linkin Park: 'One Step Closer')'_

Gym. Remains of Wall Market. Afternoon. 

Reno pounded on the punching bag, unleashing his frustrations on the stuffed column of leather, imagining it was **her** that he was pounding on. How dare she go running to Reeve to complain about **him** when she was saying the same things! And to be threatened by Reeve with the excavation of the Shinra building with her- that was just inconceivable! 

But that wasn't what was bothering him. When he'd stood there, so close to her, nearly nose-to-nose, with her breath blowing lightly on his face, her scent creeping tantalizingly into his nose, all he could think of, all he could remember, was kissing her. And that part of him that he had been before wanted to do it again. Like he had the first time. 

_He'd walked her up to her door after their second date. The first date had ended with a pleasant 'Good night' and he'd departed after restraining himself from his desire to kiss her. He didn't know what she was thinking as she stood there this time, but she wasn't making any moves to go inside either. Was that a good sign? He didn't know. He didn't have much experience with women beyond a few drunken one-night stands. He certainly hadn't had to worry about whether or not a 'good night' kiss was going to send them scurrying away from him. But this girl- she was different from them. He worried about what she thought of him, worried that if he tried to move too fast, she'd bolt and run from him. He didn't want that. He truly liked her. Liked her for more than the simple pleasure he could usually find between a woman's legs. _

_"I had a great time, Nathan." Her voice had broken through his thoughts. She looked at him hesitantly, as if trying to figure out why he had been staring at her, something that he hadn't been aware that he had been doing during his internal debate on whether or not he should kiss her. _

_'Just ask her.' A voice inside his head screamed at him. 'Ask her?' he'd answered back, amazed at the idea of being chivalrous and actually asking her such a question. _

_"Tifa." He smiled at her, trying to hide the nervousness. He was acting like a schoolboy, not a twenty year old on a date. "Do you mind if I-" This was crazy. Him, asking her for a kiss! "If I kiss you good night?" As soon as the words had left his mouth, he'd felt foolish, waiting for her to say no. _

_She'd smiled at him then as she responded with, "I'd like that." _

_Relief washed over him as he had leaned over and given her a very soft kiss on the lips, nothing more than that. But it was enough for him to feel the softness of her lips against his own, to feel her breath, and to have her scent permanently embedded in his mind. _

"Fuck." That's all he'd wanted to do again. Kiss her. But instead, all he'd managed were those hateful words, '_I may have fucked you once, but I'm not above killing you now_.' He moved to pound on the bag again, trying to replace those words echoing in his mind. 

He threw all of his weight, which admittedly, wasn't all that much, into the next punch in an attempt to force away the memory only to find that the bag appeared to be stationary and that he suddenly felt like he had pounded on a brick wall. 

He cursed loudly as he rubbed his aching arm that had absorbed the impact of his last punch. "Fuck. You could at least warn a guy before he punches a brick wall." 

Rude shrugged as he released the punching bag. "Pay attention, Reno." 

Reno snorted. "You sound like Tseng." 

"And you shouldn't be so hard on Tifa." Rude said as he emerged from behind the punching bag that he had been holding. 

So that was the reason for Rude's visit. He rarely disturbed Reno during a workout, but apparently Rude was trying to play peacekeeper. "I know what you're thinking, Rude, but that doesn't mean that I have to be nice to Ms. High and Mighty." 

"I said not to be so hard on her." Rude responded. 

"Same fucking difference." 

"No." 

Reno growled. Sometimes talking to Rude was the same as talking to a brick wall, and it was rare that he ran into two of them in the same day. He rubbed his shoulder that still ached from his encounter with the first one. "So tell me, Mr. Smarty Pants, what's the difference?" 

"Try to understand. She's lost everything." 

"That's rich, Rude. We all have." 

"The Turks still have each other." Rude's tone was unwavering. His tone rarely changed from being flat and unemotional. Only when Rude was truly wasted or truly hurting did his tone ever change, and that was something that Reno had only seen happen twice. 

"Now you sound like one of Elena's fucking self-help books." Reno grabbed his tank shirt from the nearby metal bar and pulled it over his head. Gone was the blue suit of the Turks. As much as he'd hated to abandon the first and only symbol of structure in his life, it hadn't been practical for the current efforts. He now wore faded jeans, scrounged from the small amount of luggage he had carried with him throughout their travels. 

"Don't be hard on her because she doesn't have any friends." Reno mimicked the tone of the countless books Elena had left laying around the Turks' Lounge. 

"It's not my fault she couldn't handle me and my world and decided to associate with all those Rebel assholes." Reno stopped for a moment, realizing what he had just said. Realizing that a small piece of the hurt he'd been carrying around with him had just slipped out. He silently muttered an angry curse to his head for allowing his heart to speak for him. It had been her nearness earlier. Her closeness. He cursed himself again for letting himself get that close to her. 

Rude backed away from Reno as the scent of his friend's unwashed, sweaty clothes accosted his nose. 

"When Reeve opens the Midgar Dry Cleaners, I'll make sure Elena's the first in line with my laundry." Reno smirked as he saw Rude back away. He knew he smelled awful. They all did. Sweat mixed with dirt and ash from the rubble, mixed with blood from injuries before and now during the cleanup, did not make for clean bodies. 

Rude rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses and stated dryly. "I'm sure she'll appreciate that." 

Reno wiped the sardonic smirk from his face as he continued, changing the thread of conversation that his heart had allowed to slip out. "But there's something I don't understand." 

Rude looked at him, and it was only because Reno had known the other man for so long that he knew the unspoken request that begged for Reno to continue. 

"She killed Suni. She killed your wife, Rude." Reno stated in an attempt to talk some sense into his friend, to make him remember. He himself missed the woman with the sunny disposition. She had been one of the few people that went beyond just tolerating him, but even tried to include him. And he dared to think that maybe she even **liked** him. But Sunami, or Suni as she preferred to be called, was gone. Killed in the explosion of the Sector Five Reactor where she had worked the evening shift. She and Rude had been an unexpected couple, as different as night and day. Suni had been outspoken and outgoing, whereas her mate was stoic, introverted and tacit. 

"It was Shinra." Rude spoke softly, but convincingly. He spoke like a man who had faced his demons head on and was ready to move forward with whatever life decided to hand him. 

"Shinra didn't blow up the Sector Five Reactor." 

Rude shook his head. "Shinra created everything that we are. From the Mako Reactors to the destruction around us. Think about it, Reno." 

This was crazy. Reno had never seen Rude behave so strangely. Or speak so much. 

"Maybe you should think about it, Rude." Reno's tone was laced with the unspoken sentiment that Rude had just spoken blasphemy. 

"I have." Rude smiled a rare smile, remembering the graceful tilt of Suni's head and the contagious smile that went straight to her eyes that she always bore for all around her. 

Holy, how he had loved her, and not a day went by that he didn't mourn her, but life in the slums and in the dangerous world of Shinra had taught him well, and he had long ago learned that you took the good with the bad and cherished the good memories as they dwelt side by side with the bad. Suni was gone, and nothing was going to bring her back. He hurt and he grieved, but Suni would've wanted him to continue on. She would've wanted him to be happy. Just as he would've wanted her to continue on if something had happened to him. 

As a Turk, he'd lived on the edge of danger every day. She had known that he might not come back to her at the end of the day or the end of an assignment, and she had accepted that. Suni was now a part of the past, and there was no use looking to that past when there was a future still ahead for the living. That was something that Rude knew that Reno had yet to comprehend. 

"But I don't blame Tifa for her death." Rude's tone was soft, but firm. "You shouldn't let your personal feelings cloud your judgment. It's a second chance for all of us." 

"You're fucking insane." Reno knew that, despite the fact that she had left him because he was a Turk, Rude still liked Tifa for the almost peaceful side that she had brought out in him. Granted, Rude was older and wiser and often saw the world with a different slant, but Reno couldn't believe the bullshit that he was hearing.

He turned and walked out the door and towards the bar, shaking his head. Maybe in a glass of that comforting amber liquid he could find something that held some semblance of normality. Because the rest of his life sure didn't.


	10. Eight - Progress

_*****_

**CHAPTER EIGHT - PROGRESS**

_'Why, am I changing? ... Why do people, get complacent with the things they're told? ... World disasters they come and go ... I'd give anything just to be back home ... 'Cause there are people, asking why ... There are people, who believe in ... In life, gets confusing but I don't know why ... But I've made my plans already ... Had this trouble with it all my life ... Well world disasters, they come and go ... I'd give all my strength to be back home ... 'Cause there are people, asking why ... There are people asking ... How do I get to where I've come from, now? ... How will I paint this garden I've destroyed, green? ... Can I get back to where I've come from? ... 'Cause there are people, who believe in life ... Well how do we get to where we come from? ... Peace and love ain't enough these days ... Evolution says "Time is running out, ... We've been here too long..." ... How do I get to where I've come from, now? ... How will I paint this garden I've destroyed, green? ... Can I get back to where I come from? ... 'Cause there are people, who believe it ... (Seal: 'People Asking Why')'_

Mayor's Tent. Shantytown. Evening. 

Quiet. It surrounded him like comfortable clothing. Reeve looked up from the pile of reports and realized that he hadn't been interrupted by yet another argument between Reno and Tifa that required mediation. He smiled momentarily before his brow creased with concern. As the silence of children left to their own devices was ominous, so was the lack of fighting between those two. He hoped that they hadn't managed to murder one another. He wanted both of them alive and well. 

Reeve leaned back in his chair, enjoying the reprieve from the bickering and arguing. He closed his eyes and allowed his mind to wander in a daydream he hadn't indulged in quite some time as he was currently living the demolition process. The dream of a Midgar without the plate and with sunlight streaming onto all residents played out in his head, and he smiled. 

"Dinner is served!" Elena announced cheerfully, interrupting his thoughts and jerking him back into reality as she entered the tent bearing two covered plates of food. 

Reeve smiled as she entered, realizing that he was very hungry after a day of sketching out drawings of the new Midgar. She insisted on bringing him dinner every evening from the makeshift mess hall that had been set up to feed the refugees turned workers, convinced that if she didn't he wouldn't eat. She was right, but he would never admit that to her. 

"I spoke with Tifa this afternoon." Elena said, trying to sound casual as she set the plates down and took a seat across the desk from him. "She told me that she'd decided to try not to fight with Reno anymore." 

"And Reno?" 

Elena shrugged. "I haven't seen him or Rude all afternoon." She glanced at her watch. "By this time, they're probably in the bar with Reno trying to out drink Rude." Elena grinned momentarily. "I don't know why Reno bothers. Rude wins every time." 

"Male pride. But I'm thankful for any reprieve from their fighting." Reeve chuckled as he lifted the cover off the dinner that Elena had brought to him. Standard shantytown fare, embellished with Elena's special touch. A few edible greens and flowers decorated the plate of meatloaf and mashed potatoes. 

"You've outdone yourself this time, Elena. Maybe I should reassign you to kitchen duty." Reeve's eyes twinkled as he awaited the disgusted reaction that he knew was coming. 

"Not unless you want your entire workforce sick with food poisoning." Elena made a disgusted face at his suggestion, but she was secretly grateful for the casual banter that Reeve engaged in with her. She felt comfortable around him. He had been a Shinra executive and she could identify with that. Her father had been the same, and she had grown up in that world. She understood it and she could interact easily with it. 

While Elena had always dreamed of being a Turk, she found that interacting with Rude and Reno was oftentimes difficult. She hadn't grown up in their world, and she sometimes had a hard time figuring out when they were teasing her. Tseng had been different. He never teased, but simply stated his mind. 

"On second thought, we do need a healthy workforce." Reeve chuckled softly as he took a bite. "If only it tasted as good as it looks." 

Elena smiled wryly. "It's better than starving." 

Reeve nodded in agreement, secretly thankful for the dinner company Elena provided him with each evening. She had truly grown from the under-confident young woman who had joined the Turks just a few short months ago into a woman who was poised and readily able to speak up for herself. He suspected that the ceaseless taunting of her fellow Turks had a lot to do with that as well as the responsibility bestowed upon her by the late Tseng. While Reno and Rude both grew exasperated by her habit of being overly talkative, Reeve found it refreshing and insightful, both into the efforts of cleaning up the rubble and into the personality of this charming young woman. 

He smiled as he threw his empty plate into the trashcan next to his desk. "How is everything, Elena?" He asked as her plate joined his in the trash amidst discarded ideas and sketches. 

Elena sat back in the chair, evidence of her growing comfort level with the de facto Mayor. Reeve hadn't been officially elected by ballot, but if the large chanting of "Mayor Reeve" was any indication, the popular sentiment was that he was the new Mayor of Midgar, appointed by the people to lead them into a future without Mako and, more importantly, without the meglomaniacal Shinra. 

"The cleanup efforts in Sector Seven are proceeding ahead of schedule." Elena paused. "Hopefully if Tifa and Reno can really quit fighting, they will proceed even faster. People are anxious to begin rebuilding homes and stores." Elena smiled. "They are looking forward to having normal lives again." 

Reeve nodded. "I'm glad to hear that everything is progressing well." 

Progress was excellent, but it brought something that had been troubling him back to the forefront: What were they going to use as a source of power? Junon had announced the return to coal, but that was only a viable solution for the short term. The size of Midgar's population, though currently dispersed amongst other towns and shantytowns, was massive and the reliance on coal alone would quickly pollute the city, forming a barrier of pollution. He had been entertaining the idea of utilizing hydroelectric and solar power for a long-term solution. 

"But?" Elena asked, hearing the unspoken word that dangled on the end of Reeve's sentence. 

Reeve looked at her and laughed. "Am I that transparent?" 

"Not to most people. I can just see the wheels turning in your head. Something is bothering you." Elena stated, proud that all the time she had spent reading those self-help books had finally paid off. 

"But," He paused, a twinkle of mischief in his eye as he proved her right. "There is the issue of power. All Midgar has is Mako reactors. We can convert the Reactors to coal, but I don't want to utilize that for the long term. It's too dirty, and the close proximity of the reactors to the city will quickly lead to a pollution problem. Living under the inevitable blanket of smog will be as bad as living under the plate again." 

"Nuclear?" Elena asked. "It's clean." 

Reeve shook his head. "Too risky to put in the old reactors. If they were out in the middle of nowhere, I'd consider it. I have been considering solar and hydroelectric, but they both will take time to implement." 

Elena nodded in agreement. "But if it can be done, I think we should. For the future generations." 

"Yes, you are right." Reeve shuffled a stack of papers around on his desk. "There is something else. I need you to look after things for a few days. I am making a trip to Kalm." 

Elena raised an eyebrow. "Kalm? Whatever for?" 

"To speak with the mayor there. I'd like to reopen the Mythril Mines." 

"That's murder! Sending the miners back into the mines with those creatures running around!" Elena was shocked as she remembered some of the creatures the Turks encountered in the abandoned mines while chasing Sephiroth and Avalanche. 

"We have to get rid of the monsters first. I'm sure there are Soldiers sitting around that are more than willing to fight again." This was something he had thought through. They needed the raw materials and there was no harder or more valuable material than Mythril. It could be used to create strong alloys for the new construction of buildings and power generation. And it would help revive the economy of the area, putting both the Kalm miners and some of the Midgar populace back to work. 

"How about putting Tifa in charge of that?" Elena suggested. "She's a formidable fighter and it would keep her and Reno from bickering constantly." She knew firsthand of Tifa's abilities. Elena still had slight bruising from the thrashing that Tifa had given her during the Meteor Crisis, and she knew that there was no one better in Midgar for the job. 

"You're not just trying to get rid of her?" Reeve asked, serious, and mindful of the precarious relationship between the Turks and the ex-Avalanche member. 

"No." Elena said bluntly, but smiling proudly. "I consider Tifa a friend. Reno's an ass, and this will show him that the best man for a job like this is a woman." 

Reeve laughed in relief. If Tifa and Elena could become friends, then there was hope for them all.


	11. Nine - Waiting

_*****_

**CHAPTER NINE - WAITING **

_'A kind and steady heart, can make a grey sky blue … And a task that seems … impossible, is quite possible for you … A kind and steady heart, is sure to see you through … It may not seem like very much right now … It'll do, it'll do … When you find yourself in the middle of a storm … And you're tired and cold and wet … And you're looking for a place that's cozy and warm … You'll make it... You can never forget! … A kind and steady heart, can conquer doubt and fear … A little courage goes a long, long way … Gets you a little bit farther down the road each day … And before you know it, you'll hear someone say … "That'll do, Babe, that'll do." … A kind and steady heart, is sure to see you through … A little courage goes a long, long way … Gets you a little bit farther down the road each day … And before you know it, you'll hear Someone say … "That'll do, that'll do, that'll do, Babe, that'll do." (Peter Gabriel: 'That'll Do')' _

Shantytown. Mayor's Tent. Afternoon. 

Elena paced around the tent restlessly, wondering what was taking Reeve so long in Kalm. He'd been gone a week already, and hadn't sent any word. She was fearful of what might have happened to him, afraid that he'd been ambushed and had never reached his destination. She shook her head to dispel that notion, remembering that he had taken Cait Sith with him. The big, overstuffed Moogle could protect him, even if the cat/moogle toy was remote controlled. Although one of Reeve's goals was to fit Cait with an artificial intelligence module he had stashed away, he hadn't had the time to make the upgrade lately. 

It had been a fairly uneventful week progress-wise on the cleanup efforts in Sector Seven. However, Reno had been pestering her non-stop because she was the only one that knew why Reeve had gone to Kalm. She wasn't even going to tell him where he went, but she had finally relented and told Reno that the mayor had gone to Kalm on a business trip. She wasn't going to mention Mythril, Mines, or power sources to Reno at the moment. That would disprove his theory about her that "she talked too much". Which, admittedly, she had in the past, but that was before. Her loyalty to Shinra was for a paycheck. Her loyalty to Reeve was… well, what was that for? Friendship. Yes, that was it. Reeve treated her like she had a brain and was capable of making important, independent decisions. She'd felt proud when Reeve had confided in her his plans and had put her in charge of things while he was gone. 

She'd been writing down notes and reports from the heads of cleanup, and true to her word, Tifa was trying desperately not to fight with Reno, despite his continued taunts towards her. Although she was holding up well, Elena could tell that not fighting back was weighing the other woman down considerably. She'd been spending more and more time at the ruined church, and while Elena hated to see her leave the comfort of their "family", she hoped that Reeve would return with good news regarding the re-opening of the mines. Tifa needed a serious distraction, and an outlet for her anger and frustration. Getting away from Midgar and away from Reno would do the younger woman nothing but good at this point. 

"Keep pacing like that and you'll wear canyons in the ground." Reno's voice pierced her thoughts. 

Elena looked up to find him standing cockily in the doorway. "What do you want, Reno?" Her patience was wearing thin from his constant attempts to get her to tell what Reeve was up to. 

"The usual. A bottle of good booze, a cheap lay… you wouldn't happen to have either of those would you?" 

Elena rolled her eyes and sat down at Reeve's desk. Somehow it was comforting to her to face Reno across the desk. "Not hardly, Reno. I don't drink, and you're not my type." 

"That's right. You like men in power." Reno smirked. "So if you can't give me either of those, how about some information?" 

Elena knew that was coming, and once again she'd walked right into his trap. She resisted the urge to deck him and instead said. "I'm not telling you why Reeve went to Kalm." 

"Black market goods? Kalm strippers to entertain us?" Reno prodded her with asinine questions in an attempt to get Elena to break down and tell him. Admittedly, he was impressed that she hadn't broken down yet. The Elena he'd known before was the stereotypical "ditzy blonde", giving away privileged information at the drop of a hat. But this one who sat before him was more mature, and somehow stronger. If she'd been his type, he might have considered making a move on her. But she wasn't. Besides, she'd long made it clear that she liked men in power. Tseng especially and Reno had suspected there had been an attraction to Rufus. And now apparently Reeve was an object of interest. Because of that he knew that he didn't stand a snowball's chance in Hell with her. 

"Reno-" Elena said in her best warning tone, knowing that Reno hardly took her seriously. 

"Yes, Elena?" Reno asked, putting on all the false charm. 

"I'm not going to disclose the nature of Reeve's business trip to you. But," Elena paused for a moment, knowing she was going to be treading on very thin ice soon. "I do have a request for you." 

"Yes, Elena?" Reno repeated, still in "false charm" mode. 

"I, and Reeve, and everyone else, would greatly appreciate it if you would be civil to Tifa." 

There. She'd said it. Voiced what had been on everyone's minds to ask him. Rude hadn't done it during their talk, saying that talking to Reno had been like talking to a brick wall. 

"Who died and left you in charge?" Reno's tone changed from jovial to sarcastic in a moment, and Elena could tell that he had no intention of heeding her request. 

"No one died, but Reeve left me in charge during his absence. And I am asking you to make an effort to be civil to Tifa." 

"Why would I want to be civil to her?" 

"Because she's one of us. And because she's a friend." 

Reno laughed an almost evil, scoffing laughter that Elena had never heard come from him before. "Tifa Lockheart? One of **us**? She was too good to be with me after she found out I was the dreaded 'Reno of the Turks', but she had no problems screwing my brains out before she knew who I was. You need to pick your friends better, 'Lena." 

Elena was shocked beyond belief. So that was it. Reno and Tifa had been lovers. That explained a lot, but she wondered why Tifa hadn't said anything. 

In a rare moment of inspiration, Elena actually had a comeback for him. "I picked you, didn't I?" 

"Don't ever compare me to **her** again, Elena." Reno spat back at her as he stormed out of the tent. 

Unfortunately, she hadn't anticipated how much that would piss him off after their last stream of conversation. She sighed and hoped that Reeve would return soon. Apparently she wasn't as good a leader as Reeve had thought she was. She buried her head in her hands and tried not to cry. 

"Don't let him bother you." 

She looked up this time to find Rude standing in the tent. He had passed an extremely angry Reno as he had approached the mayor's tent, and while it hadn't been his original intention to stop in, Reno's expression made him wonder. 

"I can't do anything right." 

Rude crossed the tent to sit in the chair in front of the desk. "Yes, you can." He was lousy at pep talks, and he hoped that Elena realized this, but he also sensed that she needed reassurance after an obviously bad conversation with the hot-headed Reno. 

"I pissed off Reno." 

"He'll get over it." 

"He thinks I compared him to Tifa by calling them both my friends." Elena said, trying not to sob. 

"They have a past." 

"He hates her. She didn't want him when she found out he was a Turk." 

Rude raised his eyebrows beneath his sunglasses at her words, surprised that Reno had told Elena about his sordid past with the ex-Avalanche member. "He still cares for her." 

But **you're** the one with the crush on her." Elena told him. 

"Not my type." 

"What do you mean?" Elena looked confused. 

"Don't like girls who can kick my ass." 

"You said you liked her at Gongaga." Elena was growing frustrated at this conversation, so typically Rude with short answers, giving only enough information to give her only a basic picture of what was going on. 

"Testing the waters." Rude could tell she was getting frustrated with the conversation, and he got up to leave before he said more than he intended to. In a way he had already said too much and if Elena hadn't been acting like such a blonde, he was certain that she would have already figured it out. 

"Don't worry, Elena. Reno will come around." Rude departed the tent without another word. 

Elena groaned as he departed. "Men!"


	12. Ten - Reassignment

_*****_

**CHAPTER TEN - REASSIGNMENT **

_'It's just one of those days … when you don't wanna wake up … you don't really know why … but you wanna justify … rippin someone's head off … no human contact … and if you interact … your life is on contract … your best bet is to just stay away its just one of those days … I think you better quit … or you'll be leavin with a fat lip … I think you better quit … its just one of those days … feelin like a freight train … first one to complain … leaves with the blood stain … damn right I'm a maniac … you better watch your back … my suggestion … is to keep your distance … cause right now I'm dangerous … you know I pack a chainsaw … and if my day keeps going this way … I just might break something tonight … so come and get it … (Limp Bizkit: Break Stuff (edited)')'_

Shantytown. Mayor's Tent. Morning.

"You want me to be a monster exterminator?!" Tifa was incredulous as she listened to Reeve outline his plan for reopening the Mythril Mines to them. She could feel Reno's eyes on her back, both boring into her and mocking her at the same time. She turned to glare at him. 

"Could be worse, dear." Reno's "dear" dripped with pure sarcasm. "**I** could be going with you." 

Reeve shut his eyes, trying to block out what appeared to be the start of yet another argument between the two of them. Elena had already briefed him on the events that had transpired during his trip to Kalm, and while knowing the two of them had a failed romance between them certainly shed light into the dark crevices of the mystery as to why Reno and Tifa held so much animosity towards one another, it didn't make dealing with it any easier. 

"So that's it!" Tifa spun around and faced Reeve again. "You're getting rid of me to keep Reno and I from fighting." 

Reeve opened his eyes as Tifa accused him of what was only a minor benefit of the reassignment. 

"That's not the purpose of assigning you to head the Mines Safety Taskforce. You're the best person I have available for the job. I've seen you fight, Tifa. You're lethal." 

"I'll take a beating trying to get rid of the Midgar Zolom. That thing takes several experienced fighters to kill… or someone with the sword skills of Sephiroth or Cloud." Tifa finished softly, remembering the Zolom impaled on the large stake outside the mines the first time she'd gone through them. 

Speaking Cloud's name brought a stabbing pain into her heart that she quickly pushed away. There was no sense in dwelling on him now. She kept telling herself that he had made his choice. She just hoped one day that she'd truly believe it and be able to put Cloud Strife from her heart. 

"I'm not completely concerned about the Midgar Zolom." Reeve explained. "It's the other creatures inside the mines that worry me. Even though Cait and I weren't with you when Avalanche journeyed through them, I remember the stories told by the others aboard the Highwind during our travels together. Your fighting skills are first rate, and," he glanced quickly at the Turks standing in the office with them. "far superior to the skills of any of the others here." 

Reno opened his mouth to say something, but Elena quickly covered it with her hand. She glared at him when he bit her for her efforts and pulled her hand quickly away, muttering rare obscenities under her breath. Reno merely smirked at her, as if to say, '_What'd you expect?_' But he kept his mouth shut, for now. 

It had been quite awhile since they had battled their way through the mines, and while the creatures had seemed tough then, Tifa's skills and strength had grown exponentially since that time, but she was still skeptical. Did she really want to go back to that? To the fighting? 

She glanced over at Reno, who was apparently still fuming over Reeve's last comment. Maybe dealing with the monsters in the mines would be better than dealing with the monster that haunted her everywhere she went here. For someone who hated her so much, he certainly seemed to do his best to seek her out to throw yet another taunt about their past on her. Although she was trying desperately to keep from fighting with him, it was hard for her not to fight back, and she ended up spending most nights crying herself to sleep after another round of listening to Reno make her out to be a whore looking for a cheap fuck instead of the shy, naive, virgin she had been. The man he had been then was gone, replaced by this callous, crude, smirking devil that haunted her. 

She sighed silently as she realized that all her life had been a fight of some sort. From the time her mother died, it had been a fight to keep her father together, then when she had fallen from the bridge, a fight for life. She had felt like she was fighting Cloud the night she made him make his promise at the well, and then again, the biggest fight for her life after she had been slashed by Sephiroth's masamune. And there was the fight to survive in Midgar once she had healed enough to be released from the hospital, and the times spent with Nathan… Reno… to be replaced by the fight for the Planet and against Sephiroth… and now, here she was again, still fighting in the aftermath. 

Zangan had once told her that people are born to be many things. Some are leaders, some are followers, some are survivors, and some are fighters. Maybe it was time to admit to herself that she was one of the fighters. 

She looked away from Reno who gave her a challenging look as if to say '_You can't do it'_ and back to Reeve. "I'll need a few days to prepare. What sort of reinforcements are you going to give me?" 

Tifa suddenly regretted that Yuffie had her share of the materia, knowing that while she wouldn't need the Knights of the Round or most of the other high level materia, the lesser powered materia such as Choco/Mog, Restore, Fire, Ice, and Lightning would be convenient to have. 

"There are several ex-members of Soldier looking for a good fight. If needed I can advertise for mercenary services, but I'm leery of doing that knowing the unsavory types that can attract and knowing that there are perfectly capable ex-Soldiers out there needing the work." 

Reeve didn't have to say the unspoken thought that hung in his head as it hung in hers too at the mention of mercenaries. There was no point attracting the attention of Cloud Strife right now. She was having enough trouble dealing with Reno and adjusting to being friends instead of enemies with the remnants of Shinra that she now worked with. She didn't need the added stress of Cloud and his guilt over Aeris on her back in addition to the rest. Even though Cloud was an extremely powerful fighter, he wouldn't be a good addition to this assignment. 

Tifa nodded. "How many Soldiers? There were a lot of monsters there before we took many of them out, but I could always sense more lurking in the shadows watching." 

"As many as you need without disturbing the integrity of the mines. The mayor of Kalm is looking forward to seeing the mines re-open and getting his people back to work." Reeve's tone was hopeful. Even though she hadn't said she would yet, he was certain that she had already agreed to the assignment despite her earlier reservations. 

"Good." Tifa nodded again, her expression distant as if calculating odds against the types of creatures that she had stored in her memory. 

"The Soldiers will have some materia with them. Nothing really exciting like the Knights of the Round or Bahamut Zero, but the basics. Heal, Restore, Life, Lightning, Bio, Fire, and Ice. Maybe a Counter Attack and a Sense here and there." 

Tifa nodded again. "Those will be useful." She smiled at Reeve. "I wasn't looking forward to fighting without those basics or with the idea of trying to persuade Yuffie to let me borrow some of hers." 

"Still can't fight without your materia?" Reno's voice came from behind her. Elena didn't even try to stop him this time. The angry bite wound from her earlier efforts was still throbbing, and she really would've liked some ice. 

Tifa's eyes were flashing as she spun to face him. "I can fight just fine without my materia. I was taught by the best. Care for a demonstration?" She flexed her fingers in her leather gloves, limbering them up. She wasn't wearing the Premium Heart, but she knew that she could mop the floor with Reno with her bare fists if she needed to. 

Reno shrugged and whipped out the Electro-Mag rod. "Why not? You've been claiming you can kick my ass for months now. Maybe you should prove it. Prove that you are tough enough to kill the monsters in the mines." He challenged her, flipping the switch on the nightstick to turn the current on. 

"Reno." Rude spoke from the corner, breaking the silence he had maintained throughout the entire conversation. 

"Don't try and stop this, Rude." Reno spoke, his tone even and cold. "She's been after this for a long time. Haven't you, Tifa. Haven't you been wanting to prove that you're better than me? Saving the world? Leaving me there in Corel after you got what you wanted. Ska-" 

One punch. She'd been resisting it for a long time, but he'd finally gone too far. Unfortunately for him, he was too busy flinging insults at her to see it coming. She flexed her fingers in her gloves one final time before unleashing her fist. One well-timed uppercut to the jaw and Reno was on the floor, his nightstick falling from his grip and clattering to the ground nearby. 

"Ha! Don't think this proves anything! You still haven't kicked my ass!" Despite being laid out on the floor, but still conscious, Reno couldn't resist having the last word. 

Rude rolled his eyes beneath his sunglasses before walking over, and in a very uncharacteristic move, he picked Reno up off the floor and flung him over his shoulder before carrying him out of the tent. 

"Reno, you talk too much." Elena had a hard time stifling the giggle that she felt welling up inside her as she gave into the temptation to say the very thing Reno and Tseng had always said to her. She followed Rude and Reno out of the tent, but not before turning and flashing Tifa a smile as if to tell her '_Great job!_" 

"Fuck you, Elena." Reno responded with all the dignity that he could muster being carted away over Rude's shoulder as he was. 

"I'm sorry, Reeve." Tifa was apologetic as she faced the mayor. "I didn't really mean to deck him." 

Reeve could only shake his head. There was no point in punishing either one of them over the incident. Reno had clearly deserved what he had gotten, and he was fairly certain that it would be sometime before Reno forgot this latest indignity. Although, Reno being Reno… Reeve sighed. 

"I shouldn't say this, being the mayor and all, but he did deserve it." Reeve's expression turned serious as he continued. "Be careful, Tifa. He is still a Turk." 

"Reno doesn't scare me." Tifa shrugged, appearing to shake off the warning. "And I've got a team to put together. Where can I find these Soldiers?" 

"I'll have them meet you outside the mess hall." 

Tifa smiled and turned to walk towards the door. "I'd appreciate that." 

"Oh, and Tifa?" 

"Yes, Reeve?" She turned in the doorway of the tent. 

"Thank you." 

"You're welcome." Tifa smiled as she departed, feeling, for the first time since the end of the Meteor Incident, like she really belonged here. Maybe not everything that came from Shinra was bad after all.


	13. Eleven - Remembrance

_*****_

**CHAPTER ELEVEN - REMEMBRANCE **

_'What in the world were you thinking of last summer … what was the price you paid in silver and gold … Well I might be wrong but I've got such a surprise for you … Am I wrong to tell you that I'm over you … What can I do to make my dreams all come true … What can I say to make the cruel world go away … Am I wrong to tell you that I'm over you … You know I've been waiting a long time - tangled up in you … The truth is only one step behind … tangled up in you … What was the word that he used to make you his own … What was the line that made you succumb to his will … Am I wrong to tell you that I'm over you … You know I've been waiting a long time - tangled up in you … The truth is only one step behind … tangled up in you … I'm lost and I'm lonely and I want you to hold me, yeah … The truth is only one step behind … tangled up in you … (Gene Loves Jezebel: 'Tangled Up In You')'_

Shantytown. Afternoon. 

"If I'd known you wanted to get physical, I'd have obliged you earlier." Reno's words were slurred as he approached her at the entrance to her tent. He grabbed her arm, and spun her around. Despite the influence of the alcohol in his system, he still had the element of surprise on his side. 

Reeve's warning shot through her head as she felt herself being lurched around by him. She regained her footing quickly, but he had already pinned her arms to her sides. He looked scrawny, but there was strength in those thin arms. _'He is still a Turk.'_

"I certainly remember how you like it." His eyes bored into her, anger hidden beneath the aquamarine depths, currently clouded by alcohol. 

"Stop it, Reno." Tifa demanded, keeping her voice level, despite being close to a breaking point. She was physically strong, but emotionally fragile right now, and his behavior was getting worse. It was as though he enjoyed the torment that he was putting her through. "If you want to get laid so badly, why don't you find one of your cheap whores? I'm not interested." 

"But you were once." His voice was in her ear now, and she could feel his warm breath against her skin and smell the alcohol on his breath. 

"Stop making it sound like that, Reno. It wasn't… we weren't like that at all." She twisted in his grip, but he countered by grasping her arms tighter. She could've easily kicked him and sent him to the ground, but she was fairly certain that doing so would only bring him back for more. She hadn't expected him to be back for more so soon after laying him flat earlier, but apparently Reno was one that enjoyed the torture. 

Instead of her first response of kicking him, she decided to try a different tactic with the less-than-sober Turk. She looked directly into his eyes, hopefully forcing him to remember. "Has all the time with the booze and whores made you forget, Nathan?" 

_'Nathan.' _She'd used his first name, spoken it as soft as she'd whispered it under the stars of Costa del Sol in the past. Oh, Holy, he didn't want to remember, but as his eyes met hers, the memories came flooding back. The beginning of that fateful trip to the Western Continent; the one that ended in her walking away from him. He closed his eyes against the memory that he knew was coming, but he could still feel her eyes boring into him, forcing him to remember this. He didn't have to ask her what she was thinking. He already knew. 

_She stood at the window waiting for him to arrive. He had told her he was taking her away with him for a week. Just the two of them. She smoothed out the already smooth fabric of her dress, nervously awaiting the upcoming week. She bit her lower lip as she heard him pull up. She watched him get out of the sleek sports car and admired him from her vantage point in the window. He was handsome, with flaming red hair that was pulled neatly back into a ponytail. His physique could best be described as scrawny, but there was strong muscle there. She could feel it when he hugged her. She was enamored of him, but she didn't know what he expected from her and she wasn't sure how to bring the subject up. He was 20 and four years older than she. He had lived in Midgar all his life and had grown up in the slums. She knew he worked for Shinra, but she wasn't quite sure what he did. Despite that she hated Shinra, she couldn't hold that against him. After all, even her childhood friend Cloud Strife was a member of Shinra's elite Soldier forces. _

_As he got out of the car, he glanced up towards the window to her apartment to find her standing in the window watching him. He smiled at her as he walked towards the door to the building. He watched her smile in return, but even through the glass, he could see a quiver of nervousness in that smile. He could understand that. After all, he was taking her away with him for an entire week. He himself was nervous at the whole idea, but it seemed like the right thing to do. She was different from the other girls he had dated in the past. Though she was young and very naive, he was fascinated by her. He knew that she had survived an attack from General Sephiroth himself, though Reno wasn't sure quite how. She herself wasn't sure of the details, only knowing that the last thing she remembered before she woke up in a Midgar hospital was Sephiroth's masamune slashing at her. _

_He climbed the stairs to her second story apartment, stepping past a drunk passed out on the steps. It reminded him of his own childhood in the slums, dodging drunks and other pieces of human trash on the streets and stairs of homes. He was thankful to have gotten away from that. He bore too many scars from his life down here, memories of street gangs, of which he had been a member of the toughest, until he had been caught and pressured into joining Soldier. It had provided him much needed discipline, but it was his cunning nature that had eventually gotten him noticed by the leader of the Turks. _

_She stood in the open doorway of her apartment as he reached the top of the stairs, waiting for him, a smile on her face. Her nervousness seemed all the more evident as he walked up to her and drew her into his arms. He kissed her softly in greeting, inhaling in her sweet scent. He reluctantly pulled away from her lips and looked into her eyes. Seeing the hesitation there, he asked, "Are you ready?" _

_"Yes," she replied, somewhat nervously, picking up her bag from the floor by the doorway. "I wasn't sure what I needed to pack. You said to be prepared for anything, but you didn't tell me where we were going!" _

_"Did you pack your bathing suit?" When she nodded, he continued, "And your snow suit?" He grinned mischievously as he watched her eyes grow wide. _

_"I don't even own a snow suit!" She exclaimed. _

_"Don't worry. I was just teasing you. You won't need one." He smiled at her. As much as he'd wanted to take her to the snowbound Icicle Inn, he knew there just wasn't time this trip. Maybe next time. They'd just have to make do with Costa del Sol and the Gold Saucer. She brought out the best side of him. He wasn't full of his usual smart-ass remarks when he was around her. Maybe it was her vulnerability that brought out his protective instincts, even though he knew she could probably kick his ass in a fight. Maybe it was just the desire to be better than he was. Either way, he was like a completely different person when he was with her. He could forget who he was. He could forget that he was a Turk. That it was his job to kill people. _

_"I got us a room with two beds." He looked hesitantly at her. "If that's okay? I can get you your own room, if you'd like." _

_"No, one room is fine." She suspected that he was taking her to Costa del Sol and maybe even to the Gold Saucer, but she wasn't going to say anything. She didn't want to spoil his surprise. _

_"I just don't want you to be uncomfortable." He said, wondering for the millionth time why he was acting like a gentlemanly schoolboy, and wondering even more where he'd managed to pick up these manners. He'd started taking greater care in his appearance since he'd met her, tucking in his shirt and making sure his hair was neatly combed. But there was no way in Hell that he would wear a tie. He was getting enough razzing from Rude and Tseng as it was. He didn't need to add any more fuel to the fire by adding the noose to his neck. _

_"How could I be uncomfortable when I'm with you?" She asked him, laughing softly, trying not to giggle foolishly. She was grateful for his consideration, but he didn't have to treat her like she was a china doll that was going to break. _

_He merely kissed her in reply, loving the silken feeling of her skin against his lips. She was someone he could fixate on that hadn't hurt him in the past. She had been hurt by the devastation she had witnessed, and all he wanted to do was protect her. He never wanted anything bad to happen to her ever again. And it wouldn't. Not if he was around to stop it. _

_She laughed at him as she closed the door behind her, locking the deadbolts securely behind her. He took her bag from her and held her hand as he led her down the obstacle course of junk piled on the stairway. He opened the car door for her and gazed into her eyes, bringing his hands up to cradle her face. _

_"I want you to know that... that you don't have to do anything you don't want to." He smiled softly as he brushed his thumb lightly over her cheek. "I'm not expecting anything. I just want to spend some time alone with you." He glanced around the Sector Seven slums. "Away from Midgar. Away from this life." _

_She smiled a relieved smile as she got into the car, folding her legs comfortably in the space in front of her as he shut the door. She let out a sigh of relief. She wasn't sure she was ready for **that** step yet. He was so sweet to her, but she wasn't sure. He placed her bag in the trunk next to his own and slid into the driver's seat next to her. _

_He turned to her and kissed her lightly before starting the car and pulling into traffic. "Next stop: Paradise!" _

Reno shook his head to clear away the past that refused to leave him alone. He moved his hands to release her arms from his grip, but found that he had unknowingly loosened his grip on her, and was instead stroking her arms gently. 

"Reno." Her tone was level, betraying none of the flustered emotions that he was causing in her as his fingers brushed against her arms with the gentle touch of a tender lover. "Let go of me." 

His hands dropped from her arms, and he hid his embarrassment as he realized what his fingers had been doing. He was, for once, completely without a witty comeback. So without a word he turned and walked away. 

Tifa watched him walk away, both anger and disappointment welling up inside of her as he disappeared from view. She turned and walked into her tent, peeling off her leather gloves and tossing them on the bed Her mind was spinning with the memories that surfaced from looking into his eyes and from his gentle touch against her skin. 

She shook her head to clear them, chiding herself for letting her mind think such thoughts. He was Reno, the Turk that dropped the plate on her home and friends. Despite their past, that was something she wasn't going to let go of. Not for a very long time. 

She sighed deeply as she pulled on the Premium Heart, thinking that some time away fighting monsters was exactly what she needed. No Reno to cloud her thoughts. No Cloud to drive her crazy with his fawning over the deceased Aeris. Just her, some ex-Soldiers, and a bunch of monsters.

She stretched out her arms and legs briefly before going through the motions of the Final Heaven attack against an invisible opponent. She pushed Reno and Cloud out of her mind completely and beamed. "Yeah, I've still got it!"


	14. Twelve - Dinner Date

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWELVE – DINNER DATE **

_'I would tell you about the things ... They put me through ... The pain I've been subjected to ... But the Lord himself would blush ... The countless feasts laid at my feet ... Forbidden fruits for me to eat ... But I think your pulse would start to rush ... Now I'm not looking for absolution ... Forgiveness for the things I do ... But before you come to any conclusions ... Try walking in my shoes ... You'll stumble in my footsteps ... Keep the same appointments I kept ... If you try walking in my shoes ... Morality would frown upon ... Decency look down upon ... The scapegoat fate's made of me ... But I promise you, my judge and jurors ... My intentions couldn't have been purer ... My case is easy to see ... I'm not looking for a clearer conscience ... Peace of mind after what I've been through ... And before we talk of repentance ... Try walking in my shoes ... You'll stumble in my footsteps ... Keep the same appointments I kept ... If you try walking in my shoes ... Now I'm not looking for absolution ... Forgiveness for the things I do ... But before you come to any conclusions ... Try walking in my shoes ... You'll stumble in my footsteps ... Keep the same appointments I kept ... If you try walking in my shoes ... Now I'm not looking for absolution ... Forgiveness for the things I do ... But before you come to any conclusions ... Try walking in my shoes ... (Depeche Mode: 'Walking in My Shoes')'_

Mess Tent. Shantytown. Evening.

She still had time before her meeting with Reeve and the ex-Soldiers that she would be taking with her to the mines and thought that some food might do her good. As she walked towards the door of the mess tent, she passed Elena, who carried two covered plates of food. 

"Oh, hi!" Elena looked surprised and almost guilty as she was caught by her friend. She hadn't told Tifa that she and Reeve had dinner together every night. "Sorry, I can't stay to chat, but I've got to get dinner to the mayor." 

Tifa shrugged and entered the tent. Making her way towards the food line, she glanced around the busy tent. People looked tired and weary, but there was a note of hope in the din of conversation. The rumor of the reopening of the Mythril Mines had already circulated through the populace, and some of them were looking forward to rejoining their fellow miners in Kalm. More importantly, the mines held deep veins of Mythril as well as other metals, many of which were deep in the mountains and had yet to be tapped. This meant resources to build the city that Reeve had modeled for them in his speeches, the city that this displaced populace had rallied to help rebuild. 

She took the offered plate of meatloaf and mashed potatoes from the tired, but smiling woman behind the food line. Meatloaf was apparently a staple among the mess tents as each of them served it at least 4 times a week. It wasn't particularly good food, but it was food all the same. She took the offered glass of water from another worker and walked away to find a place to sit.

"You all right?" Rude asked her as she passed the table he was sitting at. 

Tifa just shrugged and continued walking.

"You're shaking." Rude commented, noticing the slight convulsions that still wracked her body from her earlier encounter with Reno. 

"Reno stopped me outside my tent earlier." Tifa replied, her voice betraying her tiredness as she paused just past the table.

Rude grunted his reply. "Shouldn't be so hard on him." 

"Who?" Tifa asked, turning, and deciding to sit down across from him at the table. 

"Reno." 

So that's why Rude was talking to her. Anger flared briefly. "Did he send you here?" 

Rude shook his head, wishing that he could've had Elena do this or even Tseng. But neither were available for this conversation. Elena because she was a walking mass of complexes, among other things, and Tseng was dead. "My wife died in the Sector Five Reactor." 

"Oh." Tifa was silent for a moment. _'The wedding…' _The images of a wedding attended with Reno before flashed through her head. The beaming bride, radiant in white and the nervous groom with his groomsmen, the dashing Tseng, the chiseled Rufus, and the wild Reno, all dressed immaculately in black tuxedos. She remembered the fun she had had, dancing and laughing with Reno between his duties as best man. 

While he had been away from her most of the evening, he had managed to make the little time they had managed to spend together worthwhile. Other than that, she had spent the evening making small talk with family of the bride and groom. Not one of them had ever mentioned that the groom or any of his groomsmen were members of the Turks. They had just gone on and on how successful the groom was working at Shinra. 

"That was your wedding. I remember now… I'm sorry." 

She didn't know Rude very well, having never met him beyond a quick introduction at his wedding and later in their battles against one another, and as such, she was confused as to why he was telling her this. "Do you blame me?" 

"No. Shinra's lies touched us all." Rude frowned briefly, remembering the phone call he had tried to place when the word had come that Sector Five's reactor was the next target. 

_They had a person on the inside of Avalanche, but not a perfect operative. Word of details and plans was sporadic at best, and since they had received no advance notice of the Sector One explosion, he knew that they were lucky to have gotten any notice of this one. _

_He watched through his office window as President Shinra's helicopter mobilized and flew towards the reactor. In that moment he forgot that he was a cold, emotionless Turk. He picked up the phone and called her office, but he got nothing but static as the flames erupted from the Reactor. He doubted that those in the Reactor had received any warning. He hoped she had gone quickly. He resisted the nearly overwhelming urge to scream then, his wife... his life... gone. But that was the price when Shinra owned your soul._

Tifa let out the breath that she hadn't even realized she'd been holding, waiting for Rude to place the blame on her as well. Yes, she had technically been a member of Avalanche, and had been there when the Sector Five Reactor had been bombed, but it was Jessie's bomb and Cloud that had set the detonator. At most she was just an accessory. Right? 

"But Reno does." 

"Why would Reno blame me for **your** wife's death?" She was having trouble following Rude's line of meandering logic.

"She liked him. She made him feel important." 

Tifa was silent, unsure of what to say in response to that. 

Reno's words came back to haunt her again, giving her a mental nudge, as Rude spoke. _'__Their fucking blood is on your hands as sure as it is on mine…' _She'd always thought he'd meant just the deaths of the innocents in Sector Seven, but now, hearing Rude's story made her wonder if Reno's words didn't go deeper. 

Searching for the right words, Rude waited several minutes for a response. He remembered the actually happy Reno during the time that he had been dating that girl from Nibelheim. Amazingly, Reno never bragged of any conquests with her, but just smiled when anyone brought the subject of this girl up, until the rebellion in Corel. After that Reno had changed. Not just back to the jaded man he had been before, but he had actually fallen into some great hole. One that Rude and Tseng had watched, sadly, as it deepened into a raging abyss. 

The only light spot in that was that Reno was almost his "old" self around Suni. He recognized the boundaries and never made a move on his friend's wife, but he wasn't above teasing and lightly flirting with her in his unique way, and she had responded in kind, never angry with him, but always patient. Rude smiled briefly at the memory of Suni that floated through his mind, thinking what a great mother she would have made. 

Tifa had gotten up and was turning to leave when Rude finally spoke, shaking off the notion that he really was starting to sound like one of Elena's self-help books. If he kept doing this, he was afraid that he'd end up being the host of his own radio call-in show.

"Like you did."


	15. Thirteen - Penance

_*****_

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN - PENANCE**

_'Clean … The cleanest I've been … An end to the tears … And the in-between years … And the troubles I've seen … Now that I'm clean … You know what I mean … I've broken my fall … Put an end to it all … I've changed my routine … Now I'm clean … I don't understand … What destiny's planned … I'm starting to grasp … What is in my own hands … I don't claim to know … Where my holiness goes … I just know that I like … What is starting to show … Sometimes … As years go by … All the feelings inside … Twist and they turn … As they ride with the tide … I don't advise … And I don't criticize … I just know what I like … With my own eyes … Sometimes … Sometimes … (Depeche Mode: 'Clean')'_

Shantytown. Reno's Tent. Night. 

He tossed and turned, his mind unable to release the thoughts that plagued him and let him fall asleep. Normally, he had no problems sleeping; his body sore and tired from a day of hard work, but tonight… tonight was different. His jaw ached where Tifa had decked him, leaving him the painful reminder that she was perfectly capable of kicking his ass if she chose to. 

But that's not what was keeping him awake, and he knew it. It was the memories she had evoked in him when he had confronted her again, driven by the alcohol in his system. The feel of her skin beneath his caresses still lingered on his fingertips and he touched them, rubbing them, trying to wipe away the sensory imprint of her against his skin. 

Holy, what had he been thinking? Touching her like that. Letting himself get lost in the memory. He was stronger than that. He had long ago learned to lock that frivolous nonsense inside, to be cold and numb. He was a Turk. He had killed people in cold blood, taken sleeping children to Professor Hojo's lab to be used in the madman's twisted experiments, extorted, threatened, and spied. 

He growled as he pulled himself to a seated position, the blankets pooling around his waist as he held his head in his hands, flinching when he pressed too hard against the sore spot on his jaw line. He was going soft. He tried placing the blame on her presence. He pressed against the sore spot again, this time almost enjoying the pain. Although tonight had dredged up memories he would rather have forgotten, of a time where he had found an escape from the dirty work that he did, where he had been able to forget for a brief time that he was a Turk, he knew that it wasn't just Tifa causing this churning- dare he call it emotion- within him. 

It was this place, this work. He was no longer a hired assassin, the cold killer who could kill for money and rest easy at night. He wasn't doing what he did best. That was his apparent penance for carrying out Shinra's orders with meticulous precision. For delivering Shinra's carefully orchestrated plot of world domination to the masses. He was now nothing more than a highly glorified janitor, working to clean up the mess that he had helped bring onto this city under the now-flimsy guise of "just doing his job". 

He jammed his fingers through his tangle of red hair and sat up straighter as he reached for the mangled pack of cigarettes next to the cot he slept on. He slid the lighter from the pack along with a cigarette. His hands shook as he fumbled while lighting the thin cylinder, a task that he had done thousands of times before. Even when drunk off his ass, he rarely had problems performing the task that was as automatic as breathing to him. 

But tonight the emotions collided within him, bringing to him sleeplessness and a loss of coordination. He cursed her then. Cursed her for staying. Cursed her for not staying out of his way. Cursed himself for not avoiding her as he'd originally intended. Cursed himself for letting him feel something for her so long ago. 

He took a long drag from the cigarette, letting his mind wander to anywhere, anything, but her. '_Midgar. Fixate on that._' Though he tried, even that stirred up emotions that were better left locked away. His childhood in the slums, his parents' death… he shook his head to clear those memories, moving forward to his days with Shinra and the sense of belonging he had felt, despite the demands of his job. But now, while it hadn't been officially declared, it was becoming more and more recognized that the Turks were nothing more than another memory of Shinra's golden age, existing now in name only. Because of that none of them were quite certain where they would fall in the new Midgar. And he as their leader, found it very hard to fill Tseng's shoes now that Shinra had fallen. 

He didn't worry much about Elena. Although he would never admit it to her, he had extreme confidence in her ability. She made a good Turk, and while she wasn't aware of it, he knew all about the blackmail stunt she had pulled with Tseng in order to become one. Fortunately for her, Tseng also had possessed confidence in her ability, and had admired her spine for daring to blackmail him. Otherwise she wouldn't even be alive today. She was a lethal shot with a gun, and she had excellent organizational skills. He'd coerced her several times into filing his reports with Tseng, stating that was the job of the "rookie". He was brilliant at the dirty work, but the whole concept of paperwork confounded him. 

Rude, however, was another matter. The man was strong and good at hiding, and while he said he didn't blame anyone for Suni's death, Reno knew it had hit the man harder than he would ever admit. As Sector Five's reactor exploded in a brilliant fireball, Reno had found his friend in his office, his head hung, defeated, as he stared out the window. Rude had looked up as Reno entered and where normally the stoic man would've placed the stone mask he wore to hide the pain, this time he hadn't. It had never been spoken between them, but Reno was certain that Rude just hadn't been able to that time. Suni had been his life. 

He had noticed the phone's receiver lying haphazardly on the desk, as though it had been dropped after a vain attempt to save her. But he understood. Reno would never admit to it, but he himself had made both an uncompleted phone call and then a mad dash down the hallway towards Rude's office as the news of Sector Five's imminent explosion came in from their operative in Avalanche. But he too had been too late.

He sighed in frustration as he lay back down, aquamarine eyes staring at the canvas ceiling of the tent, shuddering as the realization hit him. Elena was rapidly becoming Reeve's personal assistant and second-in-command, if his leaving her in charge during his recent absence was any indication. Rude was dealing with his own pain in his own way, and had taken on the role of personal counselor as some sort of twisted therapy. Tifa was in charge of making the mines safe, but he didn't know where he fit in to this grand scheme. It was something new. Rude was right. The past **was** gone and, without the security blanket of Shinra and the Turks, for the first time in a long time Nathan Reno felt utterly lost.


	16. Fourteen - The Monster Exterminator

_*****_

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN – THE MONSTER EXTERMINATOR**

_'I guess I didn't know … Get busy child … (Crystal Method: 'Busy Child)'_

Tifa ground her teeth as the giant worm-like Crawler lashed back at them with cold breath. These creatures weren't that hard to battle but the Soldier Thirds and the Shinra Guards that had been given to her made it difficult. They didn't have the skills with their weapons or with the materia that they had been given to make them very effective at killing the creatures that had roamed and bred unchecked in the mines. They were far more effective at cleaning up the dead mess of monster. The Soldier Firsts and Seconds had long since departed for greener shores, selling their services to the highest bidder. She assumed most of them were in Junon or even Wutai by now, leaving her with the lowest of the low. 

She lashed back with a roundhouse kick at the creature, triumphant when it writhed on the ground; dying from the injuries she had given it. With her abilities and strength, it rarely took more than one well-placed kick or punch to send these creatures to their own "Promised Land". She took a moment to catch her breath before she was off running to the next skirmish as a groan of pain erupted from one of the groups behind her. 

This group had an Ark Dragon cornered and their pathetic lashings with their standard issue Shinra swords did little to counter the flying beast. It deflected most of the blows, countering their attacks with flame thrower, leaving burnt flesh behind. 

"Cast Ice on it." She ordered, casting a cure spell over the group, trying to ease the pain from their wounds. The blue shimmer of Ice surrounded the creature, the crystalline star freezing and breaking the dragon into smaller pieces. 

As the men moved in to clear the remains of the dragon away, Tifa shook her head. This wasn't working very well. She would have to rethink their strategy here. These men and women didn't have the strength and skills, despite their Shinra training, to battle these creatures in the formations that Avalanche, and even the Turks, had used. She'd divided the fighters she had been given into groups of three and had set them to searching out the creatures in the mines. While they **were** making some progress on the problem, it was slow. She wanted to do as thorough a job as possible as Reeve was counting on her to make the mines safe for the miners to return to work. 

She also wanted to get back to Midgar. She hated being away from the progress that was being made. Even though she knew that what she was doing now was important, she still felt like she had been assigned to this to keep her and Reno from bickering. She frowned to herself, but quickly plastered on a smile as she realized the little light that filtered in through the cave openings was fading. "That's good for today. Let's head back to camp." 

"You really defeated General Sephiroth?" One of the younger Soldiers asked her as they headed back towards their camp. The Soldier was looking up at the two impaled Midgar Zoloms that hovered gruesomely near the campsite. The first was the one that Avalanche had discovered on their first trip through the mines. The second was one that Cloud had added to prove that he was just as strong as the legendary Sephiroth. 

Thankfully the Kalm miners had restored the swamp boats they had used before the mines had closed to cross the marsh and home of the Midgar Zolom. She didn't want to imagine what these fighters with her would do in a battle with the legendary swamp worm. 

"Not just me, but yeah." Tifa responded tiredly yet proud of their accomplishment of "saving the world". Even though the cost had been high, she didn't regret a moment of the time they had all spent together. 

"That's really cool. He was the strongest Soldier ever." The young Soldier said, obvious hero worship of the legendary general in his voice. "I wanted to be like him someday," he frowned, pensive, as he continued. "But Shinra's gone and so is my dream." 

The young man's first words had reminded her of Cloud at the well in Nibelheim so many years before, but his last words sickened her. "Your dream isn't gone." She stated. "Shinra was strong and powerful, but it did a lot of things you shouldn't want to copy." 

"I was gonna move through the ranks and reach the top, you know?" He removed his gaze from the twin Zolom corpses and faced her. "Maybe even become a Turk." 

"The Turks were ruthless killers who left little more than devastation in their wake. Why would you want to be one of them?" 

"Because the Turks are strong. They don't bleed, and they get the job done." 

Tifa frowned, knowing that the young man's picture of the Turks was the one that Shinra had planted in the minds of the people- ruthless killers to do Shinra's dirty work. If you didn't follow Shinra's laws the Turks could come and get you. They'd proven it time and time again. 

But Turks did bleed. They died. They felt. She'd watched Tseng collapse in the Temple of the Ancients and die. She had traveled with Vincent and his personal guilt over Lucrecia. She'd had long "girl talk" conversations with Elena. She'd heard the pain of losing his wife in Rude's voice. She'd seen the pain in Reno's eyes years before. Beneath the facade even the Turks were human. 

"Like you. You would've made a good Turk." He saluted her as he walked off to join his comrades around the campfire. "I'm proud to serve with you." 

She stopped just inside the campground as the young Soldier walked off. The young Soldier Third was right. She'd carried around the pain of her past the same way the members of the Turks did, letting it fuel her. Barrett, Cloud, Vincent, Cid, Nanaki, Yuffie, even Aeris… all the same. 

She held her hands out, looking at them, truly seeing for the first time the proverbial bloodstains that Reno wouldn't let her forget. _'__Their fucking blood is on your hands as sure as it is on mine…'_

"Oh, Holy." She whispered as the realization dawned on her. 

They'd saved the world, but the difference between Avalanche and the Turks was in name only.


	17. Fifteen - The City Planner

_*****_

**CHAPTER FIFTEEN – THE CITY PLANNER **

_'Making two possibilities a reality … predicting the future of things we all know … fighting off the diseased programming … of centuries, centuries, centuries, centuries … Science fails to recognize the single most potent element of human existence … letting the reigns go to the unfolding … is faith, faith, faith, faith … science has failed our world … science has failed our mother earth … Spirit-moves-through-all-things … Letting the reigns go to the unfolding … is faith, faith, faith, faith … (System of the Down: 'Science')'_

Shantytown. Mayor's Tent. Evening. 

Reeve rubbed his tired eyes as he placed another carefully folded paper building in place on the model of the new Midgar that he had been constructing for the last several weeks. While it lacked all the panache of the model that had been stored in the upper floors of the Shinra Building, this one of paper would do for his current purposes. 

He had been sketching for months as the cleanup efforts in Sector Seven continued, but he had felt there was something missing. He remembered how he had spent countless hours poring over the model of Midgar before, turning on the lights and watching the electric train that served as a model of the transportation system run. He knew that entire system by heart as he should, having been Shinra's Head of Urban Development. 

He'd loved his job, despite the long hours and the grief he received from the other Shinra executives. While he didn't care much for politics, Reeve had always been fascinated by the technical workings of the city. As a child he'd spent countless hours filling up sketchbooks of the buildings in the slums of Midgar where he had been born. 

His childhood dream had revolved around building Midgar. He'd traveled the planet studying other cities, but there wasn't much to study as none of the other towns compared to Midgar's vast size. The closest he'd come to comparison was the far-flung Wutai, and he'd spent a fair amount of time there before the outbreak of war forced him back to Midgar where he'd taken a position with Shinra in the Urban Development department. 

His aptitude and understanding of the workings of a city soon caught the eye of the President himself, and Reeve was quickly promoted to the position of Department Head after his predecessor died under mysterious circumstances. Reeve had always suspected that the Turks had been involved and because of that had always tried to watch his step with the President. 

He loved Midgar, but hated Shinra and what they were doing to his baby. Granted, it wasn't really his, but he was the one that knew the inner workings of the city almost intimately. He understood the power output capacities of the reactors and he knew how much Professor Hojo had been leeching for his twisted experiments. Reeve could follow the trains of the transportation grid with one hundred percent precision in his head, and had built the model of the old Midgar not so much from maps and surveyor's diagrams, but mainly from his own head. 

For this model he had taken a board scavenged from the wreckage and sketched out a rough outline of the current Midgar's footprint. Where the remnants of the Shinra Building now stood, he envisioned a large memorial park. It wouldn't be right to place a new building or downtown core there. He wanted it to be a place of remembrance for all of those who had lost their lives to Shinra's greed. The eight current reactors would be converted, for the time being, to coal plants. Later they would either be dismantled or converted again to some form of cleaner energy production. 

Reeve had been studying theoretical manuals on the use of tidal currents to generate energy instead of the usual water over a dam method of hydroelectric output. But tidal generation was still experimental at best, being used successfully only by some small communities to generate power. It had yet to be attempted on the large scale that Midgar would require. That seemed to him like the most efficient way to produce energy with the strong tidal patterns in the seas just north of Midgar. He felt that it could be accomplished, but it would take time and gil to perfect the technique. Those were two commodities they were short on now. 

The weather was starting to turn warmer as spring shifted to summer, but he knew that summer in the Midgar area was short lived. The current shelters would still do for now, but he didn't want Midgar's residents to spend another winter in the shantytown. It had been nearly a year since the end of Meteor, and while he knew that rebuilding any section of the city was an impossible task given their current state of resources, he hoped that would soon change when Tifa was successful in making the mines safe for the miners to return to work. And he did want to restore power to the city and perhaps move the shantytown into what had been the slums. The remains of the plates above would offer some protection from the elements and having electricity available would help the residents as well. 

He sighed at the monumental task ahead of him. When he had decided to devote his life to being a city planner he never knew that it would take him to where he was now: rebuilding the greatest city on the Planet. But it was a good feeling even if it left him tired at the end of the day from dealing with the unknowns in the equation. He had a good team of people behind him, and he was certain that together they could rebuild Midgar. 

"Sandwiches tonight." Elena stated, walking into the tent and setting two brown paper bags on the desk. She sat down in the chair, worn out from a rough day's cleanup. 

Reeve looked up from the piece of paper that he was carefully folding into a building and smiled as she sat down. 

"Rough day?" He asked, noting her worn appearance. Her blonde hair was streaked with dirt and a couple of locks hung down in her face where she had yet to push them away. Gone was the carefully polished Turk of before. In her place was becoming someone far more comfortable with herself. He thought she had never looked better. 

Elena smiled a tired smile. "Yes. I never realized how much help Tifa was." Elena stopped, realizing what she'd just said. That hadn't come out right. Her cheeks reddened, flustered somewhat. 

Reeve chuckled softly as he continued folding the paper building. "One stone at a time; moved by one man at a time. It all matters." He said softly, repeating an old proverb he had learned during his studies in Wutai's city planning and management. 

Elena opened the bags and took out the sandwiches, flattening the bags so that they would have makeshift plates for dinner. She arranged the sandwiches and chips neatly on the bags and pulled two cans of cola pilfered from the cooks' secret stash out of her coat. She grinned as she set them on the desk. "Never let a Turk find out where you keep the good stuff. It's even cold." 

Reeve grinned at her as she set the two cans down. "I'm surprised Reno hasn't found it yet." 

Elena laughed. "He won't. Reno won't touch this stuff unless it's spiked with booze." 

"Good point." Reeve set the building in place on the small section of the model that he had sitting on the desk. It was being built in small sections and moved to the larger model against the tent's canvas wall. He moved the current section out of his way, and pulled dinner towards him. 

"What culinary delights have the cooks prepared for us tonight?" Reeve picked up the sandwich and took a quick peek inside. 

"Roast chocobo and cheddar on white." Elena bit into the sandwich. "It's really not bad, considering what they have to work with." 

He'd had worse in his life and really didn't complain much about the food served by the mess tents. They were making great strides in ensuring that anyone who desired food had something to eat. And while it wasn't of the usual quality the Shinra employees had been accustomed to, it was far better than most of the residents of the shantytown around them had ever had. 

They ate in companionable silence; he enjoying her company after a day of people running in and out with problems and disputes to be settled; she enjoying being around someone who appreciated all the hard work that she did. She worked with Reno and Rude during the day, but when evening fell, they were usually off towards their own pursuits, namely the still-standing bar in Wall Market. 

"The model is looking good. I like the way you have the buildings around the park like that." She commented, glancing over at the growing model. She had liked his idea of having the central park as both a memorial and a good place for the city's residents to gather. Reeve had spoken of playgrounds and walking/jogging tracks as well as picnic areas. In the middle was planned a monument of sorts, and he had given her the task of finding an artist to create a fitting monument. As of yet, she hadn't found someone capable of doing it. But she was keeping her ears open. 

"That's the planned downtown commercial core." Reeve explained, always happy to tell her more about his plans. She was the only one that seemed to care. At least, she was the only one that visited with any regularity. "Spread out from there in each sector will be residential areas, primarily self-contained with small shops and schools to support the local population." He moved his hand to motion to the next section and bumped against an unanchored building. It wobbled as his hand brushed against it.

Elena instinctively moved her hand to steady the paper building at the same time his did. She was shocked at the tingle that shot up her spine at the sensation of his hand brushing against her fingers. 

Reeve looked up abruptly as they touched; he had felt the same tingle that she had. 

"I'm… I'm sorry." Elena blushed and pulled her hand away. She looked around the tent for something, anything, to change the subject with, feeling both the electricity and the awkwardness that hung in the air. 

He wanted to tell her not to be, but something held him back. He was the mayor and she was… beautiful. Something told him that he would be asking for trouble if he voiced his thoughts. Instead, he steadied the building, looking for something to do to occupy the tense silence that had befallen them. 

"Reno's bored." Elena spoke, pulling a subject out almost at random, trying to ease the tension and fill the sudden conversation void. 

Reeve looked relieved as she changed the subject. "How so?" 

"He's a Turk. All he knows is," Elena paused, not sure of how to phrase this. Granted, Reeve was well aware of what the Turks did, or had done, but she herself was trying to forget the darker side of that life. "…Turk stuff." 

Reeve laughed in spite of himself. "Turk stuff?" He knew what she meant, but the way that she phrased it was, well, cute. 

Elena looked at him, but not meeting him in the eye; she didn't want him to see what was in hers, and she was afraid of what she might find in his after their "encounter" a few minutes before. "Yes, Turk stuff. The stuff no one wants to talk about." 

Reeve nodded in understanding. "What do you propose we do with Reno?" He asked her, looking for a suggestion. 

Elena shrugged and resisted the urge to smart off about her fellow Turk. '_Toss him in the ocean. See if he floats?_' "He needs to show he's tough. Turk stuff." She stated, knowing that was only a part of what her fiery superior needed. He'd been getting worse, not better, since Tifa's departure to the mines. If she didn't know better, she'd have said he was moping, and Elena was starting to understand what Rude had meant during their conversation in Reeve's absence. 

Reeve leaned back in his chair, looking thoughtful for a moment. "I do need to make a trip to North Corel. They have someone who has been working on converting Mako Reactors to coal plants. And I have eight of those that the engineer can practice on." 

"You would send Reno?" Elena asked, thinking that wasn't such a good idea, considering that Barrett Wallace was reported to have taken the reigns as mayor of Corel. 

"Not alone. I plan on making the trip to discuss a contract for coal with Mayor Wallace." Reeve referred to the former leader of Avalanche formally. After all, it hadn't been himself that had been "friends" with the man. It had been the large stuffed moogle and cat that sat in the corner of his tent office. "Reno can go along as my bodyguard." 

Elena smiled. "That will do him good." 

"But I'll need Tifa as well." Reeve said, watching Elena's expression change. 

"Are you sure? You'll have to mediate the whole time!" Elena was shocked. 

Reeve's expression was dead serious. "Regardless of that, I can't go to North Corel without her. Mayor Wallace won't trust me enough to speak to me unless she's along. Of that I'm certain."


	18. Sixteen - Recalled

_*****_

**CHAPTER SIXTEEN - RECALLED **

_'Back in black … I hit the sack … I've been too long I'm glad to be back … Yes, I'm let loose From the noose … That's kept me hanging about … I've been looking at the sky … 'Cause it's gettin' me high … Forget the hearse 'cause I never die … I got nine lives … Cat's eyes … Abusin' every one of them and running wild … 'Cause I'm back … Yes, I'm back … Well, I'm back … Yes, I'm back … Yes, I'm back in black … Back in the back … Of a Cadillac … Number one with a bullet, I'm a power pack … I'm in a bang … With a gang … They've got to catch me if they want me to hang … Cause I'm back on the track … And I'm beatin' the flack … Nobody's gonna get me on another rap … So look at me now … I'm just makin' my play … Don't try to push your luck, just get out of my way … (AC/DC: 'Back in Black')'_

Mythril Mines. Evening. 

The sharp crack of electricity being discharged resounded from behind her and she jumped out of the way to avoid the bolt that passed by her and turned the Madouge they had been battling into a smoldering, charred mess. 

Tifa was momentarily confused as to what had caused that as none of the creatures they had encountered in the mines used any sort of electrical charge nor were any of the members of her current team equipped with any bolt spells. Fire and Ice were the stronger elementals to use here. 

She spun around and was met with the smirking visage of Reno who had turned off the Electro-Mag rod and was in the process of restoring it to its customary spot on his shoulder. 

"Reno." She muttered. "I should have known." She glared at him as she stormed down the mine's narrow passageway. "Trying to get someone killed?" 

"If I'd wanted to kill someone, you wouldn't be standing here." Reno stated bluntly, his eyes looking down the passageway towards the group of young Soldier Thirds that were busily cleaning up the creature he had just fried into oblivion. They were whispering amongst themselves, speculating on why the leader of the Turks had suddenly appeared. "Nice group you've got there. You running a mission or a daycare?" 

Tifa ignored the insult, unwilling to walk into the trap he was trying to lay for her. "What are you doing here?" She demanded instead, angry to have her turf overrun. 

"Reeve sent me to help you out." He lied, that trademark lazy smirk remaining firmly planted on his lips as he slouched against a rock outcropping, the nightstick now resting casually against his shoulder. 

Reeve had sent him to the mines, that much was true, but it wasn't to help her out. It was to recall her for the trip to North Corel. Reports had shown that the monster population wasn't the threat that they'd originally believed it to be, and Reeve felt fairly confident that another week with the Solder 3rds that had been assigned would make the mines safe to reopen. That plan left Tifa free to accompany them on the important trip to North Corel. 

Reeve had assigned him to bodyguard duty, but from what threats Reno wasn't quite certain. Something told him that Elena, the eyes and ears of the mayor, had something to do with his sudden assignment back to "Turk" duties, but he wasn't going to complain. Anything was better than cleaning up Sector Seven. Well, almost anything. 

While the thought of being a "Turk" again made the adrenaline rush through his veins, the thought of returning to North Corel with her filled him with dread. He wasn't sure if he was ready to confront the memories that were sure to surface. He frowned, not realizing that he had. 

Tifa noticed the frown immediately. "You're lying, Reno." She stood there waiting for him to disclose the real reason for his sudden appearance. 

"We're going to North Corel." She saw the quick flash of emotion surge through his eyes as he spoke. 

Her own face clouded over as a deluge of memories surged to the forefront. She hastily pushed them away, but not quite well enough as her hesitation appeared in her voice. Then again, he'd had a lifetime of practice hiding his pain. 

"Why?" 

"Midgar needs power, and Wallace controls the coal mines." His voice was amazingly level, and he was proud of himself for retaining his cool exterior when it was plainly obvious to him that hers was beginning to crack at the thought of returning to the dirty wreck of a mining town with him. 

"What's that got to do with me?" 

"Wallace is **your** rebel friend. Why do you think it has to do with you?" Reno scoffed as he pushed himself off the wall. "Ironic, isn't it? You destroyed Shinra, but it's Avalanche that ends up controlling the power after it's all over." 

Tifa ground her teeth as she realized Reno had pushed whatever memories had momentarily snuck through his cold unemotional guard back inside. She knew he was baiting her, trying to get her to react. Refusing to play his game, she simply asked, "When do we leave?" 

"We leave for Junon in the morning. Reeve will meet us there." Reno turned and walked away, nimbly twirling the nightstick in his fingers. 

Tifa groaned as he departed, not looking forward to the upcoming trip. The only highlight that she could see was that she would get to visit Barrett and Marlene again. 

"Come on!" She called to the Soldiers who had just finished another battle with the creatures in the mines. "Let's call it a day." 

***** 

Tifa sat silently warming herself at the fire as Reno held the rest of the young men and women enthralled with stories of his days in Soldier. Behind the cold, flippant exterior lurked a master storyteller, and as he regaled the rest of the group she allowed her mind to wander. 

North Corel. She'd been there several times in her lifetime, most of them with Avalanche when Cloud had decided to take yet another trip to the pleasure palace that reached towards the heavens in Dio's own monument to self-proclaimed godhood. Even though she had felt a sharp pang of anger and a small pang of regret at Reno's deception each time they had passed through the town, there was nothing remarkable about those visits. But this trip would be different. 

She looked up and met Reno's eyes momentarily before pulling them quickly away, afraid that her eyes would betray her thoughts and trepidation at returning to the place where it had all come crashing down nearly five years earlier. 

_They stepped off the Ropeway from Gold Saucer, on the return leg of their vacation together, their fingers intertwined like vines of ivy, long allowed to grow together. She was smiling and he was smiling. He'd stopped her just out of the way of the other people stepping off the Ropeway behind them. _

_Embracing her, he kissed her lips gently, seemingly savoring every stolen moment he could find before their trip ended and they were back in Midgar. He whispered against her ear. "I'll never forget this trip." _

_She smiled as she kissed him back without the hesitation she had felt around him before their vacation. "Nor will I." _

_They walked together down the stairs from the Ropeway's platform and were met by a handful of Shinra guards. Behind the guardsmen she could see the unmistakable smoke and lapping flames of an inferno… or of a town going up in smoke. _

_The heat. The death. The destruction. It was Nibelheim all over again. She closed her eyes to block out the images of the burning mining town, but her mind conjured up the images of her own hometown, ablaze while Sephiroth stood watch, consumed by his madness. She clutched Nathan's arm, and he instinctively wrapped his arm around her, holding her close. _

_"Reno," The Shinra guard greeted him by a name she had only heard spoken in hushed whispers in the slums. "The others are over there." The guard motioned to the men standing on the crest of a hill nearby. _

_She looked where the guard was pointing and saw the two men standing, silent and ramrod straight. One had his hands clasped neatly behind his back; long dark hair rustling only slightly in the breeze as though it didn't dare anger the owner by moving out of place. The other stood perfectly still, sunglasses covering his eyes, his face completely expressionless. She recognized them from the wedding she had attended a short time before, but she also recognized the blue suits. Turks. _

_"Reno." She spoke the name softly, challenging him, hoping that he would deny that was his name. _

_"Tifa… I wasn't trying to hide it from you." His eyes showed sadness and pain as she let her eyes meet his for one last time._

_"You said your name was Nathan." _

_"It is. Nathan Reno." _

_"You're a Turk." She ran from him, across the burning town, tears of shame pouring down her face. She'd let him take the last of her innocence, but she hadn't even known his last name._

"Here, I'll demonstrate." Reno spoke from right above her and she hadn't realized that he'd gotten up. Furthermore, she had no idea what he wanted to demonstrate. "Tifa?" His eyes looked at her questioningly, knowing that she hadn't been paying attention. 

He held out his hand for her. "A little sparring practice? Show the troops here what you're really made of?" Reno smirked at her, challenging her to a fight he knew she wouldn't back away from. 

She ignored his offered hand and pulled herself nimbly to her feet. "Are you sure you can handle it, Reno? I know how you feel about being bested by a girl." 

Reno smirked and shrugged as he readied his stance, removing his jacket and tossing the nightstick away. "I'll make it easy on you. No weapons. Just a good old-fashioned fight." He leered at her as he continued. "Your body, my body. To their limits." 

She charged at him, ready to deliver a series of punches for his lecherous remarks, momentarily forgetting Zangan's first rule of fighting. '_Always keep a clear mind, Tifa._' She grunted as she hit the ground, one of Reno's strong hands gripping her ankle. '_Never let your opponent talk you into a fight. Fight with your head. Then with your body._' 

He flipped her over, easily pinning her to the ground to the cheering of the Soldiers gathered around the campfire. "I could kill you right now and you couldn't do anything about it." He whispered to her, leering down at her, the thought of killing her the last thing on his lust-filled mind. 

Her nearness alone was intoxicating, more than any bottle of booze had ever been. He knew he'd made a grave mistake in challenging her. His thoughts had become clouded the moment that he'd pinned her. A part of him wanted nothing more than to pick her up and carry her off to his tent for the night, despite that she was still, in his mind at least, the enemy, and despite that he knew he'd be sporting a few broken bones if he tried that tactic with her. 

"Don't be so certain of that, Reno." Her chocolate-cherry eyes flashed in challenge as, in a move learned from years of training with the fighting master Zangan, she twisted her body beneath his grasp and, pushing up with her legs, she freed herself from the constraints of his body. The crowd that had gathered was cheering her on as she flipped to her feet, reading herself once again in the fighter's stance. 

"Now, are you going to fight or not?" She asked as he too flipped to his feet, his lean muscles allowing him to move almost as gracefully as she. 

He watched her challenge him to continue, knowing that the only way to win this argument that he'd started out of some crazy notion of male pride was to put on a good show of it and let her win. Well, not so much let her win since he knew that she was the stronger and more skilled of the two of them. He'd be lucky to get out of this with all of his bones intact. 

The stunt he'd pulled of knocking her off her feet a few minutes before was nothing more than a dirty trick that he had used to take advantage of the momentary lapse in her fighter's guard caused by his goading words. Besides, he had no intention of actually doing anything to either hurt her or give the appearance of hurting her. 

Instead of continuing the impromptu scuffle, he gracefully took her hand and turned to their audience. Taking a deep bow full of mock grace, he announced. "And that was a demonstration of how to gain the upper hand in a fight." Smirking, he released her hand and walked towards his tent. 

'_What in Meteor was that all about?!_'' Tifa ground her teeth as she watched him walk away. He was so arrogant! Anger welled up inside as she balled her fists and held her position, fighting the nearly overwhelming urge to run after him and pummel his scrawny ass into the ground. 


	19. Seventeen - Reunion

_*****_

**CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - REUNION **

_'The first time I saw you I realized at once you were an angel in torment … How could I desert you … I vowed in that moment that nothing in this world … or any other would ever threaten or hurt you … Dragons may guard your door … But I'm on my way to save you … Devils wage unholy war … But I'm on my way to save you … The forces of darkness may mobilize one hundred million demons … an army to keep you far from me … Determined to stop me … they'll spend eternity regretting they ever crossed me … They'll suffer, believe me .. Dragons may guard your door … But I'm on my way to save you … Devils wage unholy war … But I'm on my way to save you … (Prefab Sprout: 'Dragons')'_

Junon. Dock. Morning. 

Reno had been uncharacteristically quiet since they'd left the Mythril Mines the morning before. He'd said almost nothing during the trek from Fort Condor to Junon, and even less after they met up with Reeve and Cait Sith. He'd disappeared into one of Junon's many bars upon their arrival, and hadn't been seen until they all met at the Junon dock the next morning. 

He felt her eyes on him and he smirked at her with an expression that said, '_If you only knew._' Unknown to him, bittersweet regret was plain on his features, and given how he'd disappeared the night before, Tifa was certain that she didn't want to dwell on what, or who, was causing the secondary emotions to play out on his face. 

"I'm going too." The feminine voice came from behind them, and Tifa spun around at the sound of the familiar voice, pure shock written on her face as she saw the young woman standing there, looking defiantly at Reno. She was dressed far better than when she'd seen her last. She wore jeans, a neat t-shirt and a light windbreaker, her hair pulled back in a ponytail. Gone were the combat fatigues and headband that had held the wisps of auburn hair in place months before. Instead, they now hung around her face, blowing in the slight breeze of the cool Junon morning. It couldn't be. 

"Jessie?" Tifa whispered, unable to raise her voice above that level. 

"I told you not to come." Reno's voice was sharp and cold. 

"Barrett is my friend." Defiance flashed in her eyes as she adjusted the bag she carried over her shoulder and walked towards the boat. "You aren't going to stop me from visiting him, Nathan." 

"Jessie?" Tifa repeated, finding her voice this time, unbelieving the sight before her. She was angry at the sharp pang of jealousy that struck her as Jessie referred to Reno by his first name. 

Jessie stopped by Tifa and smiled, embracing her in an enthusiastic hug. "Tifa!" 

"Jessie." Reno stated, a tone of warning in his voice. "We talked about this." 

Jessie released Tifa from the hug and turned to face Reno again. "No, Nathan. **You** talked about this. I've been stuck in Junon since well before Meteor fell and Midgar was destroyed. I'm tired of being treated like a prisoner when all I ever did was help **you** out." 

"Jessie. I can't let you go." Reno's voice was even. 

Tifa looked between the two of them, completely lost at what they were talking about. Jessie alive? Reno trying to keep her in Junon? Jessie helping Reno?! What in the planet was going on? 

"It's over, Nathan. Shinra is gone. Haven't I stayed hidden long enough? I already missed the part about saving the world. Are you going to deny me the chance to live now that everyone else is trying to live a normal life?" Her green eyes flooded with pain. "Tifa's seen me now, and I **know** she has questions. Are you going to deny **her** those answers?" 

Jessie knew all about Reno and Tifa's past. She had instantly known that something was bothering him and after a few drinks she had managed to get him to speak at length about the feelings being around Tifa again had dredged up. She thought that he just needed to tell her how he really felt and forget about the past, but Reno was Reno, and he always did have a hard time with letting go of the past. 

Reno's eyes met Jessie's. She had been his best-kept secret most of his life. It had been just the two of them for so many years, and he'd nearly gotten himself killed several times trying to protect her. While he had hated it when she'd decided to work for Don Corneo's filthy Honey Bee Inn, a small part of him was relieved that at least she'd be off the streets, especially when he'd just joined Soldier and wouldn't be around to protect his baby sister like he'd promised the night their parents died. He always called her his baby sister, knowing that it drove her nuts. He was only 45 minutes older than she, but she still looked like she was 19 whereas years of hard living had aged both his looks and his mind. 

From the day he joined Soldier, Reno had always looked for a way to get Jessie out of Corneo's clutches. He'd visited her there frequently, always "paying" for her for the evening. Everyone thought that he was sweet on her, but no one knew that she was his sister or that he was just trying to keep the most important thing in his life away from as much of the slime in the slums as he could. 

As he had progressed through the ranks of Soldier and then into the Turks, Reno had always kept a sharp eye out for his sister. His visits to see her became more and more frequent as his status and his pay increased. He tried several times to convince her to move in with him and share his apartment on the plate, but she always smiled and declined, telling him that she was learning a lot down in the slums. That smile was nearly always followed by some tidbit of knowledge that had escaped the careful eye of Shinra, Inc. She was looking out for him as much as he was looking out for her. 

He still remembered the day that they had learned of a grass-roots rebel group that called themselves "Avalanche" and "Defenders of the Planet" somewhere in the slums. Posters had begun appearing all over warning of Shinra's use of Mako as an energy source, explaining how it was killing the Planet. President Shinra had publicly dismissed the increasing number of fliers, but had instructed the Turks to "keep an eye on the situation". He'd gone to see his sister that evening, looking for information on the rebel group. 

Knowing nothing of the group other than what she had seen on the fliers and what Reno had told her, Jessie had nothing interesting to say about them, except that this Avalanche group was right. That the Planet would be better off without the Mako-leeching Reactors. 

He'd gone to Tseng the next day with an idea that had hatched in his head right after Jessie had said that. Tseng was instantly skeptical of the whole plan. Operatives usually underwent serious training before being placed "in the field", and the Turks never assigned anyone due to a half-baked plan. Especially not a half-baked plan because someone didn't want his sister in the Honey Bee Inn. Reno had argued and debated his sister's talent for being a quick study. He had pointed out all of the other tips that Jessie had passed their way, knowing that only a very small percentage of them had been bad information. 

In the end Tseng had relented. Reno thought that maybe it was because Tseng had a sister somewhere that, he too, would do anything to protect. But that was only speculation. He knew very little about the former leader of the Turks, and other than the obvious Wutainese heritage, Reno had no clue of Tseng's past or of his family life. He'd always carried himself with dignity and grace, speaking only what was absolutely necessary. Tseng had never been in the habit of socializing with the men under his command so details such as those that usually slipped during the drinking sessions Reno and Rude had were never learned. 

After a brief training session in what was expected of her, Jessie was sent back to the slums to infiltrate the group. Only he knew that it wasn't so much an infiltration on her part as it was her actually joining the group because she believed in their cause. Despite the fact that Jessie's reports were always lacking and she told the Turks only what Shinra absolutely needed to know, no one else could have infiltrated the rebel group so well. 

Despite that she hadn't informed them of the raid on the first reactor until it was too late, and that the word of the Sector Five reactor's raid came in at the last minute, she had given them valuable information. He hadn't known when he had gotten Jessie involved that Tifa was a part of Avalanche. All they had known at that time was that it was a rebel terrorist group suspected of working out of Sector Seven. By the time Shinra had dropped the plate, President Shinra held all the cards. Or so he thought. The man, for all his intelligence, hadn't bargained on the destructive power of Professor Hojo's greatest experiment, however deceased they had all believed Sephiroth to be. 

And up until a few minutes ago no one in Avalanche had ever suspected that Jessie had been a spy for Shinra. Or that she might still be alive and living in Junon. They didn't know of the Shinra helicopter that was retrieving an injured Jessie from the stairs of the pillar support as her own brother set the detonator to send that same pillar crashing down. 

Even through all of his arguments with Tifa, Reno had never let it slip that Jessie was still alive. He had been almost afraid of Tifa's reaction. The woman had fists of steel even without her fighting gloves, and despite his protestations otherwise, he was fairly certain that she really could kick his ass. But he, being Reno, would never allow himself to admit that to anyone, especially her. He only hoped Tifa could forgive his sister for her part in everything. 

Deep inside, he knew Jessie was right. She **did** deserve to live her own life. "You can come along then." He said as he turned and boarded the boat, brushing by Tifa without even a glance. He had no idea how to explain to her about the impromptu reunion Jessie had just created, nor was he ready to admit Jessie's part in the fall of Sector Seven. "But stay out of the way. This is official business." 

Jessie saluted him smartly in a mock salute that he didn't see as she boarded the boat behind him. "Yes, sir!"


	20. Eighteen - Confession

_*****_

**CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - CONFESSION**

_'Run and tell all of the angels ... This could take all night ... Think I need a devil to help me get things right ... Hook me up a new revolution ... Cause this one is a lie ... Hook me up a new revolution ... We sat around laughing and watched the last one die ... I'm looking to the sky to save me ... Looking for a sign of life ... Looking for something to help me burn out bright ... I'm looking for complication ... Looking cause I'm tired of trying ... Make my way back home when I learn to fly ... I think I'm done nursing the patience ... I can wait one night ... I'd give it all away if you give me one last try ... We'll live happily ever trapped if you just save my life ... Run and tell the angels that everything is alright ... Fly along with me, I can't quite make it alone ... Try and make this life my own ... (Foo Fighters: 'Learn to Fly')'_

Ocean. Boat. Evening. 

Tifa stood silently at the railing of the ship, looking out over the water as the boat cruised towards the western continent and silently cursing the wind. The wind blew her hair, trying to capture the silken strands as its chilly tendrils caressed her neck. She moved a hand to her neck in an attempt to stop the sensation, reminded too much of a similar experience five years prior, only then it hadn't been the wind teasing her so. It had been him. 

She shook her head, trying to shake the memories and keep them from coming back. The movement of her head only gave the wind more power in evoking them as it lifted the tendrils of hair that she had released from its grasp back. She sighed deeply as she continued looking over the water. The only solace she could find was in the fact that Reno had not emerged from his cabin since they had boarded the ship. 

"Hey." Tifa was so lost in thought that she hadn't heard Jessie approach and didn't realize she was standing next to her until she spoke. 

Tifa looked up from her brooding stare over the choppy surface of the waves and of the sky, alit with the colors of the sun beginning its descent into the netherworld behind the horizon. She'd been in a state of shock and confusion since Jessie's sudden reappearance at the dock in Junon and hadn't seen her old friend since they'd boarded. 

She'd mourned the death of Jessie even more than she had mourned Biggs and Wedge since the plate incident in which she and everyone else had believed that they'd all perished. Jessie had been her friend and a confidant in girl things. Beneath the tomboyish exterior that she presented, Tifa had met the young woman that lurked inside Jessie. She recalled long nights of 'girl talk' sessions where she'd divulged some of her deepest secrets. Even Aeris had never learned of the things that Tifa had told to Jessie. There had been a kinship between herself and the other female member of Avalanche, and it had hit her especially hard when they had escaped from Sector Seven and had to leave the others behind to face death. 

But now she had discovered that at least part of that was an illusion. Jessie was no more dead than she was. The part of it that totally confounded her was why Jessie had had the altercation with Reno at the dock this morning. It was crazy, but Tifa realized that a small part of her was actually jealous that they knew each other, and apparently quite well, if their conversation had been any indication. 

"Hey." Tifa responded softly, not sure of what else to say. 

Jessie smiled wanly as she leaned over the railing, looking out over the waves. "Guess you're pretty confused right now." It was a statement of fact, not a question. 

"Yeah." 

Jessie was silent for a moment, not sure of where or how to begin her confession. Although Tifa deserved an explanation, this was a trial run for when she had to confess her involvement with Shinra to Barrett. That scared her. Tifa's possible reaction scared her, but not nearly as much as the reaction that she was certain Barrett would have upon finding out that she was essentially a double agent. At least she was certain that the gruff former leader of Avalanche would see it that way, but she had to go to North Corel. She had to tell him. She needed to clean her soul before she could truly move on with her life. But first, she had to explain things to Tifa. 

"I guess you could say that I was a spy." Jessie stated simply, deciding that the direct approach was probably the best. She pulled her thin jacket around her, hugging herself as she spoke. 

Tifa turned sharply to look at her, something unreadable in her eyes. 

"It wasn't like you're probably thinking." She paused to collect her thoughts. 

Tifa was silent, waiting for Jessie to continue. She was shocked, but not really angry. The conversation that Jessie and Reno had had back on the dock had sort of raised the suspicions in her mind. Jessie was now only confirming them. 

"It was Nathan's idea that I infiltrate Avalanche, as he put it. But in my way of thinking, it wasn't much of an infiltration. I truly do care about the future of the Planet, and I knew that the Reactors weren't a good thing." Jessie smiled a half smile. "He knew that, but Nathan just wanted me out of the Honey Bee Inn and doing something other than wandering around the slums." 

'_Honey Bee Inn? Jessie was a honey bee?_' Tifa could hardly believe what she was hearing. She'd known that Jessie had grown up in the slums, but she never would have thought that Jessie would've been a part of Don Corneo's filthy operation. 

"I never expected Tseng to go for the whole idea. I was hardly fit to spy for anyone, let alone Shinra, Inc." Jessie grinned wryly. "I wasn't very useful as a spy though. They received no warning of the Sector One explosion, and very short notice of Sector Five." Jessie's face fell. "That was for Suni. I thought she deserved a chance. But I was too late."

Tifa nodded, remembering President Shinra's sudden appearance right before Sector Five's reactor blew and the subsequent battle with the Air Buster. 

"I should've died on the pillar. But Nathan wouldn't let them leave me." Jessie spoke softly. "Always the big brother, looking out for me. Tseng didn't like it, said it was too risky, but Rude actually disobeyed Tseng and rescued me during your battle with Nathan." 

'_Brother_.' Tifa's head cleared in relief at the word. Reno was Jessie's brother. There was nothing else between them. Tifa mentally chided herself for being jealous. What did she care who Reno saw anyways? 

Reno was a part of her past, a part of what was better left forgotten. Never mind the fierce emotional response that he evoked every time he opened his mouth or got near to her. His nearness to her had made her knees go weak the day he had threatened her in Reeve's tent, even as he had spoken those hateful words that made her blood boil with rage. Or how the feeling of his body above hers had made her head spin when he'd pinned her to the ground in his impulsive demonstration two days before. 

"So that's how you survived." Tifa stated, letting the information sink in before saying anything else. She didn't blame Jessie at all. Maybe a few days ago, she would've been consumed by anger, but that was before she had realized that the only thing that separated the two factions was a name. And hearing Jessie's story, though she didn't fully realize it, was allowing the ice around Tifa's heart to melt just ever so slightly. 

"Yes." Jessie whispered silently as she gazed over the water. The sky had turned to crimson as the sun made its final descent into the horizon. 

Tifa took a deep breath and smiled. "It's okay, Jessie. I don't blame you." 

Jessie smiled in return, letting out the breath that she had been holding, waiting for Tifa's response. "Barrett's going to be mad though." 

Tifa nodded. "Barrett still resents Reeve even though he did a lot to help Avalanche out." 

Jessie nodded. "But I've got to tell him. I can't hide forever." 

"I'll help you explain it to him." Tifa smiled. "He listens to me." 

Jessie beamed, hugging her friend, relieved to have found the first round of forgiveness from her fellow Avalanche members. 

"Tifa," Jessie started, changing the subject and knowing she was about to tread on what was probably very thin ice by her next words. "All those things you told me before… about the guy when you first moved to Midgar… that was Nathan, wasn't it?" 

Tifa turned to look at Jessie. "Yes. How did you know?" 

Jessie smiled softly. "He's my brother. He'll tell me almost anything. And from what he told me last night and what you told me before…" Jessie shrugged. "It wasn't hard to put two and two together." 

"You didn't tell him anything, did you?" Tifa's eyes filled with a look of near-panic, thinking of the secrets that Jessie knew. 

Jessie shook her head. "No. Girl talk is just between us girls. Anything that he needs to hear needs to come from you." Jessie smiled as they neared the coastline of Costa del Sol. "Like how you really feel about him." 

"I know it does, Jessie, but I have no clue how to tell him anything." Tifa frowned as they walked away from the railing and towards the dock. Maybe a few days of visiting with Barrett and helping Jessie explain things to him would help her gain some perspective. 

'_How I really feel about him?_' Tifa mused. '_The part about wanting to rip his throat out or the part about wanting to wrap myself up with him and never let him go?_' She figured Jessie was talking about the latter. 

"Come on, girls!" Reno shouted at her from his position on the lower steps leading to the town of Costa del Sol. He was obviously back in full "Turk" mode and looking very irritated. "This is a business trip, not a pleasure cruise!" 

Tifa looked at Jessie and nodded conspiratorially as, on a silent cue, they both sprinted past him and up the stairs leading to the town. 

"Now who's holding us up, Nathan?" Jessie asked him from the stone bridge that led down to the town and beach beyond. 

Reno suppressed the relieved smile that threatened his face as he realized that, if this burst of childish competition with him was any indication, things would be okay between Tifa and Jessie.


	21. Nineteen - Scars

_*****_

**CHAPTER NINETEEN - SCARS **

_'Forgotten thoughts of yesterdays … through my eyes I see the past … well I don't know I don't … know I don't know why … I believe I believe I believe in the truth, from inside … go away go away go away from me … leave me alone … ignorance spreads lies … how much will money buy … well I'll take my time as I drift and die … unwanted live my life a shame … who's to blame for my mistakes … (Puddle of Mudd: 'Drift and Die')'_

Wilderness. West Continent. Afternoon. 

Jessie and Tifa walked ahead of the others chattering between themselves of untold events and secrets, or so Reno presumed as he walked a short distance behind them. He couldn't hear what they were saying from there, but he was almost certain he didn't want to know what sorts of girl talk was occurring in front of him. 

Admittedly, walking behind them gave him the perfect opportunity to watch her body move though the protective covering of his sunglasses. He didn't want to think what she would do to him if she knew he was "admiring the view" as she walked on ahead, navigating flawlessly through the rough terrain. Even if any sort of physical contact from her did have a strange way of turning him on. 

Reeve and Cait Sith were somewhere behind him as the stuffed moogle was having some trouble navigating the rocky path leading to the North Corel Reactor. 

"Need to make that moogle all-terrain!" Reno shouted to Reeve. 

Reeve chuckled at Reno's remark, glad to be on the final stretch towards the coal town. He hoped that everything was going well back in Midgar. Elena had done well during his first trip to Kalm, but she had had Reno, Rude, and Tifa there to back her up. Now it was just Elena and Rude. Granted, they were both Turks, but there were a lot of things to manage. 

_'Stop obsessing.'_ He chided himself. _'Elena can handle anything that comes up.'_ He smiled to himself as he thought of Elena, and knew he was going to miss their nightly chats while he was in North Corel. 

"It's in the next set of upgrades!" Reeve shouted back. He'd already upgraded Cait's processor to include a fairly advanced artificial intelligence routine, and the robotic moogle had performed well in tests of that system. 

Reno nodded as he turned back to the women who had stopped abruptly at the top of the hill. He sprinted towards them to see what the problem was, ready to protect them in case they had encountered an angry bunch of Cokatolis. 

"Wow." Jessie said as she looked down at the Corel Reactor spread out on the land below them, its design resembling a miniature Midgar. "So this is what one of those Mako stealing things looks like from above?" 

Tifa nodded. "Different from Midgar's, but yeah." 

"Hey, what's that smoke coming from it?" Jessie asked, noticing the smoke billowing from a smokestack on the far side of the reactor's structure. 

"Coal." Reeve and Cait finally caught up with the others. "They've converted it to burn coal. It's what I plan to do with the Midgar reactors, at least temporarily." 

Jessie smiled in relief. "I thought they were sucking the Planet dry again." 

"Barrett would never let that happen." Tifa said, smiling as she took the lead and led the group down the walkway that led past the reactor and to the train tracks that ran into North Corel. She was trying hard to keep up the brave front, but she had no idea what to expect on this journey, either from herself with Reno along, or what they might find when they reached Barrett's hometown. Tifa was afraid of his reaction when he saw Jessie, and she had been mentally rehearsing a speech for when they saw Barrett again. 

Reno grimaced as she spoke, disgusted at the whole journey and of Tifa's adoration of the man. This whole trip was a festering wound that he believed had healed, but as they headed back towards North Corel he realized that the hard scab that had held the feelings in place so long was being slowly, painfully ripped away. He was trying hard to hide his pain, but it was becoming harder and harder the closer they got to where the wound had been created. 

Reno pushed the erupting feelings back as best he could and he walked past them. "Quit gawking. It's only a fucking reactor." 

"Maybe for you, Nathan, but I've never seen one of the remote ones, and I've never seen any of them from this angle." Jessie stated, feeling the tension radiate from her brother, and biting back a sarcastic remark because of it. 

Reno said nothing and continued on, fighting for control of his emotions. 

Reeve rubbed his temples momentarily trying to massage away the sudden tension in his head as he sensed another argument brewing.. Perhaps Elena had been right and that bringing Reno along was a bad idea. 

They continued on in silence down the bridge to the reactor itself and over the railroad tracks into the cavern where Barrett and Dyne had had their showdown with Scarlet years before. Tifa glanced at the retreating figure of Reno in front of them as she felt a pang of sorrow realizing how far reaching the events during the devastation of North Corel had truly been. Dyne was dead and Barrett was raising his friend's young daughter as his own. Reno too had had his soul devastated, only by her, and while part of her wanted to try to heal that wound, she had no idea where or how to begin. 

The sharp smell of creosote filled the air as they emerged from the cavern and started on the trek across the railroad trestle that led to North Corel. Work crews were busy working repairing the rotted through sections of the trestle and they waved to the group as they passed by. Tifa smiled, momentarily able to put the thoughts of the past from her mind, feeling proud that Barrett had been able to accomplish something since the end of Meteor. They themselves had accomplished a lot considering the relative size of Midgar to North Corel. Reno still walked ahead of them, and she watched him, noting how his shoulders slumped in the jacket of his suit even while he tried to keep his cold Turk exterior in place. 

Reno stopped at the end of the railroad tracks and looked around the town. His eyes fell on the Ropeway station in the distance and moved the short journey to the hill where Tseng and Rude had stood five years prior surveying the disaster they had been sent to "take care of". He took a deep breath and entered the town, fearful of the reaction of the townspeople at once again seeing a Turk in their midst. 

Tifa and Jessie were right behind him, having caught up to him during his lapse into nostalgia, with Reeve and the moogle right behind them. Tifa was struck by the change in the town. The tents and ramshackle buildings were gone, replaced by homes reminiscent of the ones she remembered before the town had burnt. The smell of fresh timber permeated the air and a fine layer of black coal dust covered everything in sight. Tifa thought that she had never seen a finer sight. The townspeople bustled about their lives, smiling again as their town was becoming something to be proud of instead of the devastated remains of one of Shinra's disastrous power plays. 

All work in the town came to a standstill as someone spotted Reno standing at the edge of the town. "Turks?!" Came the alarmed cry as someone rushed towards a house in the center of town. Reno just smirked, basking once again in the thrill of what it meant to be a Turk. 

Barrett Wallace emerged from the house a moment later, a look of anger on his face and the Missing Score firmly attached to his arm. 

"Barrett!" Tifa shouted, breaking away from the group and running towards her old friend in an attempt to stop the altercation that she was certain would happen if she didn't. She understood why Reeve had insisted that she come along. Of course, it didn't help that Reno was back in "Turk" mode and basking in the fear that he had instilled in these innocent townspeople. 

Barrett stopped as Tifa rushed forward. He scooped her up in a bear hug, forgetting for the moment that there was a Turk in their midst or that the woman he now had smashed in a hug had come with said Turk. "Tifa!" He set her down firmly on the ground, a smile on his face. "What ya doin' all the way out here in North Corel?" 

"Reeve has some business to discuss with you." Tifa smiled. "He wants to convert the Reactors to coal plants." Tifa didn't tell Barrett that Reeve's solution was only temporary. No sense in getting Barrett any more riled up than necessary. Reno's presence alone was enough. 

"And the Turk?" Barrett shot a glance towards the rest of the group from Midgar who were still standing just inside the entrance to the town. 

"Reeve's acting bodyguard." Tifa commented dryly, glancing back towards Reno and the rest of the group. 

"We," Barrett hesitated slightly, remembering to think about what he was saying as Marlene and Elmyra had been coaching him to do since he became the Mayor of North Corel. "We are not going to need the likes of the Turks in North Corel! So he can just knock off his tough guy stuff." Barrett was sure to allow his voice to carry, both to send the message to Reno, and to alleviate the fears of Corel's residents, who still hovered fearfully nearby. 

He winked at Tifa and whispered to her, "Marlene's, I mean, Marlene and Elmyra have been coaching me." The former leader of Avalanche nearly burst through his shirt with pride at both his own progress and that of his daughter as he told Tifa why his language was a lot smoother and cleaner. 

Reno shrugged nonchalantly and said to Reeve. "You heard the mayor. If you need me, I'll be at the Gold Saucer. Forget this fucking dirtwater town." Reno too made sure his message carried both to the former rebel leader and to the coal miners as he sauntered off towards the Ropeway Station. 

Barrett clenched his fists as he gave the back of the retreating Turk a quick glance. "That's what I'd expect from **that** one. But it ain… **isn't** enough to make me lose my cool now." 

Reno turned around briefly and smirked as he spoke, "Hey, Tifa, if you change your mind about my offer, I'll be in the Ghost Hotel." 

Tifa shot Reno a look of pure daggers as he turned and continued towards the Ropeway, noting how his posture had changed from the rounded shoulders of dejection to the square-shouldered, assuredness of Reno the Turk. 

If she'd been able to see his eyes, she would've seen how much the strong front was costing him emotionally and how much he secretly hoped she did come to meet him at the Ghost Hotel. Despite her holier-than-thou attitude, being back here was dredging up too much of the past, and maybe because of that he might find forgiveness for her if he delved deep enough into the recesses of his shattered heart. 

In his loudest booming voice, Barrett shouted to the townspeople as Reno disappeared onto the Ropeway platform. "All clear, folks! Nothing but an **ex**-Shinra employee!" 

The townspeople looked relieved as Barrett spoke and continued their business as they had been doing before the unexpected arrival of the group from Midgar. 

Barrett glanced over towards Reeve and Cait and he couldn't believe his eyes at the other person that he saw, or thought that he saw standing there. She looked a little different, but the sight of what looked like Jessie made him forget his newly learned grammar. 

"Dat girl! I'd swear dat's Jessie." Barrett took another look at Jessie, who stood there nervously, resisting the urge to hide behind the moogle. 

Tifa said quietly. "It is." 

"Don't give me dat!" Barrett raised his gun arm in the air and waved it around. "Jessie's dead!" 

"No, Barrett. It's a long story, but Jessie's alive." Tifa spoke softy, confirming her earlier words. 

Barrett took another look at the auburn haired girl that had traveled with Tifa and the others. "Damn," was all he could say. For once Barrett Wallace had been left speechless.


	22. Twenty - Uncovered

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY - UNCOVERED **

_'What else should I be ... All apologies ... What else should I say ... Everyone is gay ... What else could I write ... I don't have the right ... What else should I be ... All apologies ... In the sun ... In the sun I feed as one ... I wish I was like you ... Easily amused ... Find my nest of salt ... Everything is my fault ... I'll take all the blame ... Aqua sea foam shame ... Sunburn with freezeburn ... Choking on the ashes of her enemy ... All alone is all we are ... (Nirvana: 'All Apologies')'_

North Corel. Mayor's Home. Evening. 

After Reno's sullen departure, the remaining members of the group from Midgar had moved inside Barrett's home and were comfortably seated on soft furniture. Elmyra had done wonders with Barrett's home, and she was currently serving the group lemonade and cookies. 

"Tifa!" Marlene shouted excitedly as she ran from the doorway of the living room and launched herself into Tifa's lap. 

"Marlene." Barrett tried to look stern in order to reprimand his daughter for her acrobatics into the young woman's lap, but Tifa had already enveloped Marlene into a hug. 

"Hey, Marlene! Have you been keeping your dad out of trouble?" Tifa asked the young girl, amazed at how much she'd grown in the last year. 

Marlene nodded. "I've been teaching him how to talk right and to watch his temper." 

Tifa smiled. "He told me. You should be proud of him." 

Marlene nodded. "Miss Elmyra and I have been decorating!" 

Tifa looked around the room and noticed Barrett watching the exchange between herself and his daughter with pride in his eyes. "It's very pretty in here." 

Marlene smiled at the compliment and whispered, "Is that Jessie?" 

"Yes, it is." Tifa wrapped her arms around the girl as she sat on her lap and whispered, "I don't think your dad's going to be happy hearing her story though." 

Jessie sat across the room from Tifa and Marlene, looking and feeling very small as the large chair seemed to envelop and hide her. While she knew Tifa was on her side, she was nevertheless worried about Barrett's reaction. She was also concerned about her brother's sudden flare up of temper, and hoped that he was okay. She knew this was where it all happened, and she understood each's reluctance at forgiving the other, but she also knew that both of them had the perfect opportunity to put the past behind them, right here where it had all ended. If only they'd both stop being so stubborn. 

"Jessie." Barrett spoke to her, knocking her out of her reverie. She sighed quietly to herself. Too much heartache and too many secrets, but now was the time to unburden herself and put one of those secrets to rest. 

Jessie smiled nervously. "Yes, Barrett?" 

"You're alive. How'd you manage that?" 

"The Turks rescued me." He'd asked a question, so she answered it honestly, but waiting for the torrent of temper that was sure to come from Barrett. He'd never been known for his patience or long fuse. 

Barrett turned red beneath his dark skin, forgetting himself and dropping back into his normal speech patterns. "Turks?! What dem damn Turks got to do with it?!" 

Jessie spoke softly. "I was one, a honorary one at least." 

Barrett rose from his seat and turned towards the door. "A Turk! I trusted ya!" 

"Barrett." Tifa spoke softly. "There's more to it than that. Listen to what she has to say. Please?" 

"I always believed in **our** cause, Barrett." Jessie spoke, finding some strength from a inner pool buried deep inside herself. "What Shinra was doing with the Mako Reactors was wrong." 

Barrett glowered at Jessie and Tifa both, "Damned Shinra! In my own group!" 

"I'm not proud of what I did." Jessie frowned. "But there was more to it than what you think. I wasn't asked to infiltrate Avalanche to spy for Shinra. That was only secondary, and what I received from them in gaining access to the Reactors was far greater than they ever received from me." 

Barrett stood there silently, not moving any further towards the door. Jessie took this as a sign that he was waiting for her to continue. 

"Like the rest of you, my life before Avalanche wasn't very good. I grew up in the slums, and from the night that our parents died my brother and I took care of each other before he was forced into Soldier. After that, I ended up in the Honey Bee Inn. I just needed to be off the streets." 

Something started to soften in Barrett, hearing that the girl had ended up in Corneo's filthy den of avarice, but there was no way in Meteor that he would let her see it. He wanted to hear the rest of her story. 

"Soon after my brother was promoted to second-in-command of the Turks Avalanche's fliers started appearing all over the place." Jessie smiled. "I'd seen them, and while I usually had information to give to my brother about the various problems in the slums, I had nothing on Avalanche, except the personal conviction that you were right." 

"Who's he?" Barrett asked, looking for an answer as to just which Turk Jessie's brother was, already suspecting that it was the volatile Turk that he had encountered earlier. 

"Nathan Reno." Jessie said proudly. She was proud of her brother, even if Barrett would never understand that. Nathan was her twin, the one person in the world that understood her better than anyone else. 

"Ya gave away information to the Shinra!" Barrett waved his gun arm in the air, exploding again upon hearing that Reno was the brother of one of his group's members, and that she had passed up information to him prior to joining Avalanche. 

"Papa!" Marlene rushed over to him and threw her arms around him, in an attempt to calm him down. He usually had a hard time staying angry when his little girl was hugging him. 

"Barrett." Tifa spoke gently. "Please let Jessie finish. She's already said that she got more information from them to help **us** than she ever gave them." 

Barrett picked up Marlene and lifted her to his shoulder as he stood there, glowering at Jessie and Tifa both. He glanced over to Reeve and Cait Sith, the former was seated quietly on the sofa with Tifa sipping his lemonade and the latter stood quietly in the corner, remembering how Cait had spied on Avalanche as well. 

When she noticed that Barrett had calmed somewhat again, Jessie continued. "Yes, Nathan is my brother, and he did convince Tseng to train me to infiltrate Avalanche, but Nathan **knew** that I believed in your cause. He only wanted me out of the Honey Bee Inn." Jessie paused, watching Barrett's face remain impassive. "I can't say that I never gave them information. I did tell them of the impending Reactor Five explosion, but it was after the bomb was set." 

Barrett's face turned red with fury. "Reactor Five! Ya almost got us killed by dat robot thing!" 

Jessie frowned as Barrett spoke. "I was only trying to save a friend." 

"Damned Shinra!!" Barrett would hear none of it. "All of dem shoulda died!" 

Reeve turned a pasty white at Barrett's words. 

Tifa spoke softly, seeing Reeve's reaction and trying to soothe the man's anger. "If she hadn't, we never would've fought Air Buster, Cloud **wouldn't** have fallen through the church and met Aeris. We wouldn't have raided the Shinra building to rescue her, and wouldn't have found out that Sephiroth was still alive." Tifa paused, letting that sink in. "Barrett, we'd **all** be dead if she hadn't. Sephiroth would've summoned Meteor, and we would've been totally powerless to stop it." 

Jessie was shocked as Tifa spoke. If what she was saying was true, and she doubted that it wasn't, in her futile attempt to save the life of one innocent, she had inadvertently set in motion the events that would save the world. Jessie smiled softly. '_Guess I did get to save the world after all._' 

"Sector Seven." Barrett yelled, still not having forgotten or made any steps towards forgiving the Shinra for that destruction. "Dey dropped the plate on a sector of innocents!" 

"Innocents died on both sides, Barrett." Tifa told him gently. "When you look at it, there really isn't much difference between Avalanche and the Turks. We bombed reactors. They dropped a plate. The difference is in name only. Both sides have blood on their hands." She regretted that Reno wasn't there to hear that. He needed to know that she'd finally understood what he had been telling her since the end of Meteor. 

"You been hangin' around the Shinra too long!" Barrett yelled. "Done forgot what we's fightin' for!" 

"It's over, Barrett. Shinra is dead." Tifa got up and walked to him, touching him on the arm. "It's time to let it go." 

'_Good advice_.' Tifa thought to herself. '_Maybe it's time I took it as well._' 

"Papa, don't be mad at Tifa and Jessie." Marlene told him in soothing tones, calming him visibly. He hated getting upset around his daughter. 

Barrett stood there silently as Tifa's words and Jessie's story sunk in. Maybe Tifa was right. He'd worked the last year rebuilding North Corel, fueled by a desire to atone for his sins of letting Shinra build that damned reactor and steal away the lives of innocents. It appeared that Reeve was trying to do the same thing in rebuilding Midgar. Hadn't Tifa said that Reeve had come here to discuss business? 

"Jessie." Barrett spoke, turning his attention to the young woman who had shrunk back into the oversized chair in which she sat. 

Jessie looked up at Barrett, expecting to see fury in his eyes. Instead she found kindness and forgiveness. 

"Is that story all true?" He spoke, finding once again the language skills that Marlene and Elmyra had been coaching him on. 

Jessie nodded and could barely find her voice. "Yes. Nathan Reno is my brother, and I spied for Shinra, but I always believed that Avalanche was right." 

"Come here." Barrett's tone was firm and commanding. 

Jessie rose from the chair and walked towards the large black man, not sure what to expect. He embraced her in a giant bear hug, lifting her off her feet and taking her breath away. 

"I… I forgive you." Barrett spoke, a tear slipping out of his eye, at his first utterance of those words ever. 

Everyone in the room smiled in relief. 


	23. Twenty-One - Gold Saucer

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE – GOLD SAUCER**

_'I cry for your heart of stone … I'm gonna wait until you come home … Oh why I am I alone? … I'm as good as dead yeh … Ooh I lost my sense of passion and direction … To protect myself from hurting and despair … Listen to my heart my soul is aching … Fool or saint? … Cause you went and left me … And you so upset me … I can't believe that you would ever find it easy … To walk away as if you'd never really cared … Did you expect that I'd give in and beg for mercy … Out in the gutter … I cry for your heart of stone … I'm gonna wait until you come home … Oh why I am I alone? … I'm as good as dead yeh … Ooh I look back on the first night with affection … And if you had a heart you'd remember too … The way we used to run around like little children … Fool or saint? … My mother told me … You'd be no good for me … I cry for your heart of stone … I'm gonna wait until you come home … Oh why I am I alone? …  
I'm as good as dead yeh … Out in the gutter … I got to break that heart of stone … I cry for your heart of stone … (I been worried about you baby) … Oh why I am I alone? … (I been worried about you baby) … I'm as good as dead yeh … (I want you back) … (Erasure: 'Heart of Stone')' _

North Corel. Town. Night. 

"Where are we going?" Jessie asked Tifa as they crept out of the house, trying not to wake the other occupants who still slept inside. 

"Gold Saucer." Tifa grinned at her friend. "I've still got a Gold Ticket so we don't have to pay to get in." Tifa pulled the lifetime membership pass out of her pocket and showed it to Jessie. 

"Gold Saucer!" Cait Sith exclaimed, coming alive from his corner and bounding after them. Apparently Reeve had left the moogle on auto-pilot instead of shutting the animated toy down for the evening. 

"Shh!" Tifa said to the cat and moogle. "You can come too, but you have to be quiet until we get to the Ropeway." 

The cat bounced happily on his moogle as the small group walked up the stairs and stood on the platform waiting for the Ropeway's car to return. "Oh boy! Tell your fortune?" 

Tifa giggled at Cait. "Sure!" 

The moogle danced around, moving its arms up and down as it always did when it was printing out a fortune. The cat reached down and took the piece of paper from the moogle. "Your lucky color is blue." 

"No, no, no! That won't do!" Cait exclaimed. "Let me try this again!" 

Jessie had no idea what to make of all this dancing and fortune telling being done by the large overstuffed toy that she had been introduced to at Junon. Tifa had given her a quick background on Reeve's animated robot toy, but hadn't mentioned the moogle's penchant for telling fortunes. 

The moogle stopped its dance and the cat took the second piece of paper. "Never dance with two left shoes."  
"Cait!" Tifa exclaimed at the craziness of the fortunes the moogle was giving. 

The cat shrugged. "It is good advice, but hold on. Let me try again!" For the third time, the moogle did its dance, and the cat took the fortune with some trepidation, remembering that in the past, when the moogle did actually predict something, it had been fairly dire. "The confession of truths will lead you home." 

"This thing must be broken!" Cait bopped the moogle on the head. "I can try again!" 

"No, Cait, it's okay. I think I understand." Tifa smiled and looked at Jessie as the Ropeway's car unloaded its passengers and they got on board. 

Jessie spent the trip staring, amazed, out the windows of the Ropeway. All the lights and sounds and fireworks everywhere was sensory overload, but she was excited to finally be visiting the amusement park that she had heard so much about. The car came to a stop and they got out. Tifa had the membership card in hand as they approached the entrance. 

"Cait Sith needs no membership card!" The cat exclaimed as it bounded through the entrance and disappeared into tube leading to Wonder Square. He was gone by the time Tifa and Jessie entered the main station. 

"Reno said he'd be at the Ghost Hotel." Tifa pointed at one of the openings in the wall. "If you're anxious to check on him, that is." Tifa was hiding the fact that she wanted to see him, but was dreading what he would say when she finally told him that he was right. "Or we can take a tour and then see him later." 

Jessie was torn momentarily, but quickly decided on the tour. Nathan could brood awhile longer. She'd never been to the Gold Saucer before and didn't know when she'd get to come again. "He's probably not in his room anyways. Let's take the tour." 

Tifa grinned. "Let's start with Chocobo Square. Maybe Ester will loan us a couple of chocobos to ride since ours are still at the ranch." 

Jessie's eyes widened. "Me? Ride a chocobo?" 

"Sure, why not?" Tifa giggled happily as she pulled Jessie into the portal to Chocobo Square. She knew that she still needed to find Reno, but this was Jessie's night to experience the Gold Saucer. There would be time to talk with Reno later. 

***** 

Reno sat at the bottom of the stairs leading to the Battle Arena, a stack of "tissues" sitting next to him, trying not to look defeated. He'd spent the afternoon trying to take out his frustrations in Dio's famed Battle Arena, but all he'd gotten for his troubles was a stack of tissues and very sore muscles. He'd been sitting there for quite some time, trying to find the strength to move. People always said that you could fight in Dio's battles and come out feeling just fine afterwards, but those people obviously never spent the entire afternoon there or without any materia. 

He hadn't been lying when he said he'd be at the Gold Saucer. He had no intention of staying in the nearby town, not when it was so obvious that he wasn't wanted there. '_Ex Shinra employee_.' The way that Wallace had described him was accurate, as much as he hated to admit it. He'd donned the blue suit again for this trip, feeling the need to surround himself with what was familiar to endure the trip into hostile territory, and using any intimidation tactics that he could in order to protect his body and his heart. 

He'd felt Tifa's sharp, icy glare as he'd left her with the offer to join him in the Ghost Hotel, knowing that she wouldn't, but feeling the need to try to hurt her as her constant defense of the terrorists and condemnation of the Turks drove daggers through his soul. 

Happy couples ran by him, not giving him a second glance. Muscle bound men climbed the stairs to impress their girlfriends with their strength and prowess in battle. Reno scoffed at each of them in turn. Didn't they realize that love was only an illusion? 

He gathered up enough of what remained of his strength and pulled himself painfully to his feet, clutching the stack of tissues in his hand. He thought about dumping them in the nearest trash can, but somehow they were symbolic to his state. The symbol of losing. He'd lost it all, hadn't he? His job, his security, and most of all, the only woman he'd ever loved. He was tired of thinking about the "if-only's" that plagued his mind. If only he'd been born to another family, if only he'd walked away from the Turks, if he'd told her before he'd lost his heart that he was a Turk. 

"Fuck."

It was over. No more losing. He crumpled the tissues into a ball and tossed them in the trash before squaring his shoulders again and entering the passageway to Chocobo Square. He still had a little gil left. He'd been dubbed "King of the Birdies" once before. Time to prove he still had what it took to win somewhere.


	24. Twenty-Two - Annihilation

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO - ANNIHILATION **

_'Never made it as a wise man … I couldn't cut it as a poor man stealin' … Tired of livin' like a blind man … I'm sick of sight without a sense of feeling … This is how you remind me .. This is how you remind me of what I really am … It's not like you to say sorry, I was waiting on a different story … This time I'm mistaken for handing you a heart worth breaking … I've been wrong, I've been down, been to the bottom of every bottle … These five words in my head scream "are we havin' fun yet?" … It's not like you didn't know that … I said I love you and I swear I still do … And it must have been so bad … Cause livin' with me must have damn near killed you … This is how you remind me of what I really am … This is how you remind me of what I really am … It's not like you to say sorry, I was waiting on a different story … This time I'm mistaken for handing you a heart worth breaking … I've been wrong, I've been down, been to the bottom of every bottle … These five words in my head scream "are we havin' fun yet?" … Never made it as a wise man … I couldn't cut it as a poor man stealin' … This is how you remind me … This is how you remind me of what I really am … It's not like you to say sorry, I was waiting on a different story (Nickelback: 'How You Remind Me')'_

Gold Saucer. Night. 

"This place is huge!" Jessie exclaimed as they exited the tube from the Station and stood at the foot of the stairs leading to Chocobo Square. 

Tifa laughed. "You haven't seen hardly any of it yet!" She ran up the stairs, Jessie following, still overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of the amusement park that reached towards the sky. 

"Ester!" Tifa exclaimed, walking up to the popular, if slightly oddly dressed, racing manager. 

Ester smiled at Tifa as she recognized the brunette. "Tifa? It's been a long time. Have you come to race too?" 

"If you have a chocobo or two for us to borrow." Tifa was curious as to what Ester meant by 'too'. "This is Jessie." Tifa introduced the two women. "Jessie, the is Ester, the greatest chocobo racing manager on the planet." 

"You aren't racing Cloud's chocobos?" Ester looked confused. 

"I haven't seen Cloud in months." Tifa stated, realizing that not only had she not seen him, she hadn't thought of him except very briefly since he'd shattered her heart right after Meteor. She'd been too busy with the cleanup efforts and dealing with all the emotions that being around Reno had dredged up. 

"I won!" The familiar voice came from behind her. 

Tifa looked in shock as a sweaty Cloud Strife walked up to where they were standing. What was he doing here? Wasn't he supposed to be off finding himself and atoning for Aeris' death? 

"Congratulations!" Ester told him. "Would you like to race again?" 

Cloud noticed Tifa standing there and he suddenly looked sheepish. He had no doubts what that expression on her face was saying. "I, uh… No, I'd better not." 

"Hi, Cloud." Jessie spoke, trying to break the tension between Cloud and Tifa. 

Cloud turned towards the voice he hadn't heard in over a year. A voice that as far as he knew could only be coming from the grave. 

"Jessie?!" 

Jessie groaned at the prospect of going over the whole story again. "Yes, Cloud. I'm alive." 

"You don't owe him an explanation, Jessie." Tifa stated, glowering at Cloud. 

Cloud shrugged and gave Tifa a '_What'd I do now?'_ look. 

"Can she ride one of your chocobos?" Tifa asked nicely, trying unsuccessfully to hide the anger that was welling up at seeing Cloud here at the Gold Saucer when she'd always assumed he was trying to figure out a way to bring Aeris back. 

"Uh, sure." Cloud scratched his head. "Take the blue one. It's the most even-tempered."   
Jessie nodded, having no real clue what Cloud was talking about. Tifa explained the basics in riding and controlling chocobos in the race to Jessie, and sent her into the next race. "Don't worry if you win or not. We'll be cheering for you either way!" 

Jessie smiled nervously and entered the jockey's lounge to await the call for the next race. 

"I guess you're wondering what I'm doing here, huh?" Cloud asked Tifa once Jessie had disappeared.  
  
Tifa shrugged, hiding the hurt she felt, even though she was fairly certain she was over him now. She was angry with him, but it wasn't an anger that made her blood boil like the anger she felt whenever Reno started in on her. 

"I was coming to see you." 

"Save it, Cloud. You weren't, and you know it. If I hadn't accidentally run into you here, I wouldn't have seen you." Tifa kept her tone level. She was amazed at how little effort it took. 

"Yes, I was. I did a lot of thinking while I was in the City of the Ancients. I never felt for Aeris what I felt for you. I always wanted to protect her, but it was always you. You were the one that met me at the well… the reason I joined Soldier, the one that helped me pull myself together in the Lifestream." His Mako blue eyes met hers, searching for an answer, for acceptance. 

The familiar flutter of feeling suddenly welled up in her heart as he spoke, but her head quickly tried to push it away. He'd left her alone after Meteor to fend for herself. Reeve had taken her in, made her feel wanted. She had a burgeoning friendship with Elena, one of her former enemies, and a past with another enemy that she was desperately needing to sort out. Cloud's presence was confusing her, to say the least, but through the jumbled pile of thoughts that invaded her mind, came what she knew she needed to say. 

"It's over, Cloud." 

"But, Teef! I realized that it's you! That you're the one I want for the rest of my life!" 

She'd been searching for a replacement, just as he was. Someone like her, someone who knew the pains of her childhood, someone she could agree with and not have to justify being with, never realizing that she had already found her soul mate, and had left him hurting and confused. 

"No, Cloud. I'm not. All I ever felt for you was an infatuation. I was looking for security, and you were familiar; my childhood friend." 

It hadn't ever been Cloud that she'd been searching for. He was her childhood friend, whom she'd had a crush on then, but now... no, not now. A crush wouldn't last forever, and she knew that Cloud wasn't the one for her. It had nearly taken the end of the world to make her realize that.

"Teef…" 

She caught sight of a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye. Thinking fast, she told him. "There's someone else." It wasn't quite the truth, but it wasn't quite a lie either. 

Her admission of having someone else floored him. "Who?" He demanded, though knowing he had no right to ask, and knowing that she had no obligation to answer him. 

He was standing there, just a few steps away engrossed in the racing monitor. He probably had a fair sum of gil riding on the race. She knew it was wrong; she knew that what she really needed was to talk to him, not use him for revenge on Cloud. Her heart knew that he would only hate her more for what she was about to do, but she did it anyways. The urge to show Cloud that he wasn't the one for her was overwhelming. And maybe a small part of her wanted to feel his skin against hers again. 

Cloud's jaw dropped to the ground as he watched Tifa walk over and calmly kiss Reno. 

Reno had no clue why he was being pulled away from the racing monitor, but the touch on his arm was familiar. He turned to protest the treatment, only to find that he'd given her the opening she'd needed. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders and her lips were pressed up against his. His eyes looked over her shoulder and saw the reason for her sudden interest in him. She was only using him. Using him to make that asshole Cloud Strife jealous, but somehow he didn't feel all that used. Somehow the anger that he knew he should be feeling wasn't there. 

The soft feel of her lips pressing against his own brought so much flooding back. All he could do was close his eyes and let himself imagine for just a moment that she really did feel that way about him and kiss her in return. His mind was on auto-pilot, not really thinking about what he was doing, but letting his instincts take over. He buried his hands in her hair, and pulled her closer to him, playing along with her game. He'd been wanting this since the day he'd gotten in her face in Reeve's office. Hell, if it meant he could kiss her for all it was worth, he'd do it gladly and worry about the repercussions later. "_I'll play along, Tifa, but this will cost you_." 

Instead of the expected reaction from him, she felt his hands in her hair and felt herself being pulled closer to him. What she had expected to be a short, chaste kiss followed by an angry smirk was rapidly becoming much more. He nipped at her bottom lip and when her lips parted in surprise, his tongue slipped between her opened lips. He kissed her like he had before, gently, tenderly, slowly exploring what he hadn't touched in four years, but buried beneath the tenderness, she could feel a growing hunger in his kiss. A hunger she wasn't sure she was ready to give in to again. 

He felt her pull away from him, and he looked into her eyes to find a multitude of emotions playing out in her garnet depths. Regret, sorrow, passion, betrayal. They were all there as he studied her for a few moments, still not releasing her from his arms. She turned away from his gaze and he reluctantly released her. She was frowning. Frowning?! He tried to get her to meet his eyes again, looking for a source of that frown that preyed on her beautiful face, but she refused to meet his eyes again. 

"I'm… I'm sorry… Nathan." Tifa turned and ran, lest her eyes betray her anymore than her actions already had. 

'_Nathan_.' Reno turned and watched Tifa depart, enjoying the look of shock on Cloud's face. He was reminded of a day nearly a year ago where Cloud Strife had foiled him twice. First by blowing up the Reactor and then later by escaping with the girl he had been sent to retrieve for Professor Hojo. Apparently now it was his turn to foil Cloud Strife. Reno smiled at that thought. But there was another thought playing in the dark corners of his mind. Something he had been trying to avoid. He was falling in love again, and he was certain that nothing good could come of that. 

"What'd you do to Tifa?" Jessie asked as she approached from the racetrack, the thrill of coming in second in her first race gone upon seeing Tifa retreating through the doors. 

"Nothing she didn't start." 

"Did you two reach a truce?" Jessie looked hopeful. 

'_A truce? Could kissing her until I couldn't breathe be called that?_' Reno smirked thinking of the events that had transpired before Jessie's arrival. Tifa hadn't spoken of forgiveness, but she kissed like a woman seeking absolution. 

"Not exactly, but we didn't kill one another either." 

"Did you tell her how you feel?" 

"No." Reno responded. "I can't tell her that." 

Jessie sighed. Sometimes her brother was so stubborn. "Are you just going to keep playing this cat and mouse game then?" 

Reno said nothing, instead he turned away to look at Cloud, the reason for the ten minutes of bliss he'd just experienced with Tifa. 

"Hey, Strife." Reno smirked his trademark smirk as he raised a hand in a casual wave to the spiky-haired blonde and exited the lobby. "Thanks." 

Cloud had no idea what to make of that. 


	25. Twenty-Three - Breakfast

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE - BREAKFAST **

_'I tried to love you I thought I could … I tried to own you I thought I would … I want to peel the skin from your face … Before the real you lays to waste … You told me I'm the only one … Sweet little angel you should have run … Lying, crying, dying to leave … Innocence creates my hell … Cheating myself still you know more … It would be so easy with a whore … Try to understand me little girl … My twisted passion to be your world … Lost inside my sick head … I live for you but I'm not alive … Take my hand before I kill … Still love you, I still burn … Love, hate, love Alice In Chains: 'Love, Hate, Love')'_

Barrett's Home. North Corel. Morning. 

The sun was coming up over the horizon when Tifa and Jessie made their way back towards the town of North Corel. Cait Sith had been nowhere to be found when they had left after an evening of touring and enjoying Dio's pleasure palace. They were trying to get back before Barrett and Reeve realized that they were gone, although the fact that Cloud had insisted on coming along would be sure to raise suspicion. 

Tifa carefully turned the knob on the front door and opened the door cautiously only to find Barrett standing at the foot of the stairs scowling.

"Where have you all been?!" He demanded, noting their disheveled appearances and confetti stuck in their hair. 

"I, um, took Jessie on a tour of the Gold Saucer." Tifa explained sheepishly. 

"Don't need to be spendin' that kind of gil!" Barrett roared, slipping back into his old accent. 

Tifa showed Barrett the Gold Ticket. "I still have a pass and GP from before." 

"What's he doing back?" Barrett growled, motioning to Reno. 

"He's a part of Reeve's staff now, Barrett." Tifa explained. "He has every right to be here." 

"Besides," Jessie started, knowing the volcano that was Barrett's temper would erupt with her next words, but having to say it anyways. "You once said that family and friends of Avalanche would always be welcome in your home. Nathan's my brother, and an old friend of Tifa's." Jessie winked at the other woman. 

Barrett's face turned a deep burgundy and he raised his gun arm to shake and wave it around in the air as he laid his eyes on Reno's smirking face. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Elmyra's entrance from upstairs. 

"Barrett." Elmyra's soft voice floated down the stairs followed by Elmyra herself. "Even the Turks are entitled to friends and family." 

Reno's smirk softened into something resembling a smile as he draped an arm around Elmyra's shoulders. "You're all right. What's for breakfast?" 

Elmyra laughed at the attention from the charismatic red headed Turk. "Why don't you come help me out in the kitchen and we'll find out." She touched Barrett gently on his arm as she departed. "Don't lose your temper." 

"I don't cook, but I can supervise." Reno's voice floated from down the hall as he disappeared into the kitchen with the older woman. 

Barrett calmed visibly, shocking Tifa as she noticed the amount of self-control her old friend showed at the appearance of Aeris' adoptive mother. But he continued to scowl as Reno walked off with Elmyra and as he saw who else the girls had brought back with them. 

Cloud stood there, scratching his head in his customary pose when he was nervous or at a loss for words. 

"You gotta lot of nerve showing up here." Barrett spoke to Cloud. "Leavin' Tifa like that." 

"Barrett." Tifa spoke before Cloud could. She didn't need Cloud bringing up the scene he had witnessed in the Chocobo Racing hall, at least not before she'd had a chance to smooth things over with Reno. "It's okay. We asked him to come. He wants to help with efforts in Midgar. I didn't think that Reeve would mind the extra help." 

Cloud was confused and still trying to figure out why Tifa hadn't said anything to Reno since they'd left the Gold Saucer or why she wasn't following him around. She'd said they were together, and if the kiss he had witnessed the night before was any indication, he'd gathered they were fairly serious. But what did he know about women and Tifa especially. She'd been a riddle to him since they were children. 

"Help? Who's going to help?" Reeve asked as he came down the stairs, his dark hair still damp from his recent shower. He'd spent longer than he should have, but it had been nice to sleep in a real bed instead of on a cot and the hot shower was something that he had sorely missed over the last several months. If he hadn't been so committed to restoring Midgar, he'd have seriously considering buying a house and settling in Corel just for the simple amenities. 

"Cloud." Tifa said, smiling at the mayor. "We found him at the Gold Saucer."

Reeve searched Tifa's face for something that said she didn't like the concept of Cloud returning to Midgar, but could find none. Instead of protesting as had been his initial thought had he found reservations in Tifa's countenance, he chuckled, looking around for Cait and not finding him. "I take it Cait is still there?" 

Tifa nodded. "We looked all over for him, but he wasn't anywhere to be found." 

Reeve chuckled some more. "That sounds like him. He knows all of the best hiding places there. He was probably pestering Dio in his office. If he's not back before we leave, I'll go retrieve him." 

"Breakfast is served!" Reno announced, coming up to them, a white apron tied around his waist and a chef's hat placed on his head at a jaunty angle. Tifa and Jessie both stifled giggles at his appearance. Leave it to Reno to ham up everything. 

"So you mock me?" Reno said in a false, overacted accent that would be French if the French existed on the Planet as he adjusted his hat to an even extreme angle. "Hmph!" Reno tilted his head back and stuck his nose up in the air as he stormed off back to the kitchen. 

Tifa and Jessie looked at one another and burst out laughing. "Come on, let's get breakfast before he decides to feed it to the dogs." Tifa walked towards the kitchen, the rest of the group following. 

***** 

She'd glanced at him a few times from her seat next to him and tried to draw him into the conversation, but he'd responded only with the most basic of answers and gone back to focusing on his food. In reality he was studying her covertly, enjoying her relaxed conversation with his sister and with the other members of Avalanche, except for a few strained bits with Cloud. He was especially intrigued by her ease at relating to Barrett's young daughter. He'd personally never found children particularly easy to understand, and he attributed that both to his life as one of Shinra's Elite and that he had been robbed of his own childhood by life in the slums and the need to protect his sister. 

The little girl chatted with Tifa about school and all the fun things they were doing there, and about how much fun it was decorating the house with Elmyra. Tifa was always patient with Marlene and spoke to her kindly, always asking for more information and making Barrett's daughter feel important. He let his mind wander to what could have been, imagining that this was their table and the little girl was their daughter. A small smile crept onto his lips as he realized that wasn't an unpleasant thought. 

She looked up then, meeting his eyes, and she realized that he had been studying her when he quickly glanced away. She had no idea what he had been thinking, but she was certain that it involved her naked. 

In response to his reaction, she brushed her knee against his under the table where the movement couldn't be seen by the others at the table, sending a jolt of electricity up his spine. He wasn't sure if she'd done it on purpose until he glanced at her. He wanted to tell her to stop playing with him; to stop messing with him, making him feel things he shouldn't; that he didn't want to. But he couldn't, not now at least. They were at breakfast with all of her friends and a group of people that would think he was only trying to be the center of attention if he said anything. 

_'Keep it up, Tifa. You'll pay for this later.'_ He thought as her knee brushed against his again, clouding his thoughts, and making him warm inside. He took a large drink from the glass of orange juice sitting in front of him to try to cool himself down, but was afraid that not even a fire hose could put out the fire that had been smoldering for the past five years, and was currently being fanned again. 

He groaned inwardly as he realized the only thing that could put out the fire was the woman sitting next to him at the table. And that was exactly what he didn't need. 

_Oh, Holy, this was going to be a long trip._


	26. Twenty-Four - Growth

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR - GROWTH**

_'Hello, my friend, we meet again … It's been awhile … Where should we begin … Feels like forever … Within my heart are memories … Of perfect love that you gave to me … Oh, I remember … When you are with me … I'm free, I'm careless … I believe above all the others … We'll fly … This brings tears to my eyes … My sacrifice … We've seen our share of ups and downs … Oh, how quickly life can turn around in an instant … It feels so good to reunite … Within yourself and within your mind … Let's find peace there … 'Cause when you are with me … I'm free, I'm careless .. I believe above all the others ... We'll fly... This brings tears to my eyes … My sacrifice … I just want to say hello again … (Creed: 'My Sacrifice')'_

East of North Corel. Late Morning. 

They'd trekked back over the railroad tracks towards the Corel Reactor, this time with Barrett leading them, his voice booming with pride as he greeted the workers repairing the tracks and explained how they had managed to convert the reactor from Mako to coal. 

"We've got the best engineer on the Planet working on it." Barrett explained to Reeve. Despite his mistrust of the man during the Meteor crisis, Reeve's honest intentions of reviving Midgar without the use of Mako and of his willingness to negotiate a contract, even if it was for the trade of one raw material for another and not gil, had won Barrett over. 

"He says that it's only running at 50% capacity right now, but that when more adjustments are made, we can get up to 100% if we need it, but he doesn't recommend it." The black man was concentrating on his speech, Elmyra kept telling him that it would be easier to do the more he practiced, and Marlene was so proud of her Papa for being so "mayorly". 

"Fifty percent already?" Tifa asked in surprise. There wasn't that much in North Corel at this point. 

"Dio." Reeve explained. "Corel provides the Gold Saucer with power as well." 

Barrett nodded in agreement, confirming Reeve's explanation. Dio's massive power need was providing a good income to help purchase timber from Gongaga. Reeve's exchange of Mythril and other metals would be a welcome addition to the mining town. They were still running on the old mining equipment, most of which was barely safe. Metals meant new and safer equipment. Despite past experience with Reeve during the Meteor crisis, Barrett was looking forward to this new arrangement. 

Jessie had been half listening to the conversation in front of her, but soon grew bored as Reeve and Barrett discussed power ratios and output ratios. Normally she loved those sort of things… bombs, monitors, flashy stuff, but right now, that couldn't hold her attention. She hung back until she had fallen into step with her brother who had been trailing far behind the rest of the group. 

"Are you going to tell me what happened at the Gold Saucer or not?" Jessie asked him as he caught up with her. 

"What's to tell?" Reno asked her in return, slightly irritated at being interrupted from the thoughts that churned through his mind. He was trying to sort out his feelings, and he was finding it difficult. One part of him still wanted to hate her, but the part of him that had kissed her the night before was still in control of his emotions. 

"What happened for one!" Jessie looked exasperated. Neither Nathan nor Tifa had said a word to her about the event that had sent Tifa running from the Chocobo Racing room or her brother's intense study of Tifa at breakfast. She doubted the others had noticed it, but no one knew Nathan like she did. 

"She kissed me." 

Jessie was speechless. 

"Don't look so shocked. She was only trying to make Strife jealous." Reno informed his sister, trying to both keep his sister's hopes from rising and to keep his own head level. The latter was proving to be difficult with his heart fighting for control of his emotions. 

"Are you sure?" Jessie asked him, glancing towards the rest of the group. Tifa was deep in conversation with Reeve and Barrett and Cloud was walking by himself a short ways behind the three in the lead. Reeve had decided not to retrieve the stuffed moogle from the Gold Saucer before the trip to the reactor. 

Reno shrugged. "Why shouldn't I be? She kissed me when he was standing there." 

Sometimes Jessie wanted to beat some sense into her brother, but she couldn't tell him what she knew of Tifa's feelings for her brother. Girl talk stayed between them, just as what Nathan told her of his feelings for the martial arts master stayed between brother and sister. 

"But you thanked him." Jessie spoke, reminding her brother of his flippant remark to Cloud as he'd departed. 

Reno frowned, letting his eyes watch Tifa's form way ahead of them with the mayors of Midgar and North Corel. "You know how I feel about her, Jessie." 

That wasn't entirely true. His sister did know that he'd spoken those three words to Tifa only to be rejected, but she didn't know how his skin still burned where the brunette had touched him. He could still feel the imprint of her lips against his, of her knee brushing against his at breakfast. He knew that if he closed his eyes he would be able to evoke even older memories, but those were best left buried. 

Jessie sighed. "I wish you'd just tell her, Nathan." 

"I can't." Reno paused, trying to find the right words. "She won't let go of Sector Seven. She won't forgive me." His voice was soft and barely audible as he spoke. 

_'Both sides have blood on their hands.'_ Jessie remembered the words Tifa had spoken to Barrett the day before. Words that had calmed him down and made him listen to reason. 

"She already has." 

Hope dared to well in his heart as his sister spoke, but his head squashed the seedling of hope that sprang into his long-neglected heart as he scoffed at his sister's words. 

"Hardly. Ms. High and Mighty won't let me forget that I set the bomb that dropped the plate." 

"Nathan, you are the most stubborn, impossible, frustrating man that I have ever met." Jessie told him, hardly believing what she was hearing. "She told Barrett that the guilt of Sector Seven was on both sides, not just on the Turks." 

That small seedling dared to grow, beginning the difficult process of choking out the weeds of black hatred that he'd carried around for so long. However, hearing what Tifa now felt about the Sector Seven incident from Jessie wasn't enough. He had to hear it from Tifa herself. But, somehow he believed that Sephiroth and Meteor would return before that happened. 

Jessie watched her brother's face as it remained nearly impassive, but his eyes betrayed what was going on inside of him. She laughed to herself as she glanced at Reno's sunglasses, perched in his hair, instead of over his eyes. 

"Just tell her how you feel, Nathan." Jessie said softly, touching his arm, wanting so badly to tell her brother all that she knew, but she wouldn't betray Tifa's trust like that. Some things were still sacred. "Don't let her get away again. For both of your sakes." She whispered. 

Reno frowned. He wasn't ready to bare his heart to her again, and he wondered if he'd ever be ready. The remembrance of the sharp sting of rejection was still too fresh in his scarred heart. 

Jessie frowned at his frown, feeling for him, recognizing the hurt she saw in his eyes. She'd seen it when she'd first met Tifa. The bittersweet emotion that was love lost had stained her eyes, hiding behind it even deeper hurts. Hurts that, over time and friendship, Tifa had revealed to her friend, neither suspecting that both knew the man that had left an indelible mark on the younger woman. 

"Nathan," Jessie had to bite her lip to keep from saying what her mind screamed to tell him, but she couldn't. She couldn't violate that trust. Instead of continuing, she sighed deeply. She glanced towards the group in front of them to find that they'd entered the caverns leading towards the reactor. "Oh! We're almost there!" 

Reno watched as his sister darted off. She'd been about to tell him something. He knew Jessie too well, but something other than the reactor's sudden close proximity stopped her. He wondered what it was, but now was not the time to dwell on his past relationship with the brunette walking in front of him. 

Professionalism kicked in as he rejoined the group, his conversation with his sister pushed from his mind. Regardless of what Jessie had said, they were walking into a dangerous reactor with the former leader of Avalanche. He'd planned reactor bombings before. His trained Turk mind ran the possibility of this whole trip to the reactor being a trap as he fell into step with Reeve. Though the chance was slight, it was still a possibility. There was a shantytown of people without power waiting on the outcome of this trip, a motley assortment of Midgar's population who depended on Reeve and himself for security and hope. As a Turk, and as the Mayor's personal bodyguard, he wasn't going to do anything to let them down. 


	27. Twenty-Five - Meanwhile, Back in Midgar

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE – MEANWHILE, BACK IN MIDGAR**

_'Take this pink ribbon off my eyes … I'm exposed … And it's no big surprise … Don't you think I know … Exactly where I stand … This world is forcing me … To hold your hand … 'Cause I'm just a girl, little 'ol me … Don't let me out of your sight … I'm just a girl, all pretty and petite … So don't let me have any rights … Oh...I've had it up to here! … The moment that I step outside … So many reasons … For me to run and hide … I can't do the little things I hold so dear … 'Cause it's all those little things … That I fear … 'Cause I'm just a girl I'd rather not be … 'Cause they won't let me drive … Late at night I'm just a girl … Guess I'm some kind of freak … 'Cause they all sit and stare … With their eyes … I'm just a girl … Take a good look at me … Just your typical prototype … Oh...I've had it up to here! … Oh...am I making myself clear? … I'm just a girl … I'm just a girl in the world … That's all that you'll let me be! … I'm just a girl, living in captivity … Your rule of thumb … Makes me worry some … I'm just a girl, what's my destiny? … What I've succumbed to Is making me numb … I'm just a girl, my apologies … What I've become is so burdensome … I'm just a girl, lucky me … Twiddle-dum there's no comparison … Oh...I've had it up to here! (No Doubt: 'Just A Girl')'_

Mayor's Tent. Shantytown. Afternoon. 

Elena drummed her fingers on the desktop, bored. Sector Seven's cleanup was nearly complete. Reports from the work crews estimated that it would only be a few more days before they had hauled the remaining rubble from the sector. She had already begun reassigning some of the crews to the rubble of Sector Two, which was the next sector in Reeve's master plan. His goal was to clean up the destroyed and nearly destroyed sectors first before moving to the still inhabitable sectors. Already there was a campaign underway to preserve Wall Market as a historic district. Despite its seedy reputation, it had played a large role in the old Midgar slums and was remarkably unscathed from the Meteor attacks. 

Elena had already decided that she would do her best to preserve the church in the Sector Five slums. Since the day she had discovered it and forged the first strands of friendship with Tifa, Elena found herself going back there more and more, seeking solace and perspective. She wasn't sure if it was the idea of communing with a higher deity or if was just the quiet reverence of the church that helped her clear her mind. 

Reeve had the church on the model of the new Midgar, but after what she had learned and witnessed during the cleanup of Sector Seven, she wasn't sure how well the old church would stand after the rubble around it was cleared. She suspected that much of that rubble was actually holding the old church together. 

Elena shuffled a stack of reports to another section of the desk, distracted and restless at the lack of word from Reeve. Not that she expected him to check in with her, but they'd been gone nearly a week now and a myriad of scenes played out in her mind. The former leader of Avalanche going berserk and killing the group from Midgar in a vengeful rage, Reno and Tifa having a showdown and Reeve getting caught in the crossfire, Cait Sith exploding and showering Reeve with burning sparks, or Reeve noticing just how attractive Tifa was and running away with her. Her eyes widened as that last thought crossed through her mind. 

_'No, Reeve is more responsible than that. He would have contacted me if that had happened. What am I thinking?! I've got to get a hold of myself. I **AM** a Turk. I should act like one!'_

Deep inside she knew that all of these possibilities were merely her imagination running wild and that Reeve would soon return with good news. She smiled remembering that she had good news for him as well. The mines had reopened the day before. Tifa had done a fantastic job with the Shinra troops she had been assigned, and the monster populations in the mines were under control. Complements of guards had remained at the mines for security and were likely to remain there long-term. 

She had watched happily as the miners had left the shantytown of Midgar and headed south towards the mines. It had been bittersweet without Reeve there to witness it and lead it, but she understood that he had to be in North Corel. The people of Midgar desperately needed power. They had all gone too long living in the dark without the amenities they had grown used to in their formerly civilized society. Besides, he had left her in charge of Midgar in his absence. It was only natural that she should oversee the reopening of the mines as the acting mayor. 

Despite that she hated all the paperwork and quick decision-making that was required, it still felt good, though tiring, to be leading it all. It had given her a deeper respect for Reeve and what he did on a daily basis. He rarely came out of this tent, not because he didn't want to, but because he didn't have time to! The constant parade of foremen and work crews with requests and demands and questions through the tent left her head spinning and oftentimes made her feel lower than low as she struggled to find answers. Reeve was the city planner. The mastermind. The one with the ultimate vision of Midgar. She was just the rookie Turk, still green and wet behind the ears. 

'_Be proud, Elena_.' She could hear the words in her head, but she wasn't sure to whom the commanding presence belonged. _'You have no reason not to be.'_

She remembered her father, and how she had admired his commanding presence at Shinra parties. She remembered her mother, seemingly docile as she flitted between groups at the parties they had thrown in their home on the plate. She'd seen it all growing up, peering down into the world of the adults from her perch on the upstairs landing, hidden behind the large Wutainese vase that was the pride and joy of her mother's endless collection of bric-a-brac. It had been cream colored with an intricate tangle of intertwined lines forming a complex floral pattern in red. Inset into this pattern were scenes of strong warriors defeating the weak opponent. She always asked her mother about the vase, but the older woman had never been able to tell her young daughter much about it other than that it was a very old remnant of the Tseng Dynasty. 

Not wanting to appear a silly girl, Elena had never said anything to him, but she always wondered if Tseng had been descended from that strong Wutainese House. He'd always carried himself with such grace and dignity, like those warriors immortalized on the vase, never allowing his weaknesses to show through to his opponents. It had been completely accidental that she had discovered his affair with President Shinra's daughter. She'd fully expected him to have her killed for her blackmail stunt, but apparently something in the guts that it had taken her to actually blackmail the leader of the Turks had piqued Tseng's interest. He'd apparently seen that she had what it took to be a Turk, despite that she possessed more than her fair share of naiveté. 

It was hard to believe that all of that happened just a year ago, and here she was now, sitting behind the mayor's desk, chosen by the mayor himself to help lead Midgar into a new golden age. 

"You're right." Elena responded to the voice in her head. Realizing that she'd spoken out loud, she quickly glanced around to see if anyone had heard her. She sighed in relief as she confirmed that she was alone. _'Good. Don't need everyone thinking the current de facto mayor is losing her mind.'_

Reeve had shown that he believed in her. Despite what her fellow Turks might think, the mayor knew that she had what it took. Elena smiled. Despite the ruins of Midgar around her, life was good.


	28. Twenty-Six - Requiem

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX - REQUIEM**

'_Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road … Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you where to go … So make the best of this test, and don't ask why … It's not a question, but a lesson learned in time … It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right … I hope you had the time of your life … So take the photographs, and still frames in your mind … Hang it on a shelf of good health and good time … Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial … For what it's worth, it was worth all the while … I hope you had the time of your life … (Green Day: 'Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)')'_

Cliffs. Outside of Midgar. Dusk. 

Rude sat on the outcropping of rock high on the cliffs outside of Midgar. A bottle of amber liquid sat beside his bent leg, on which his hand rested, his index finger tracing a lazy pattern on the bottle as he gazed over the ruins of the city. It had been a year. Not a year since the ruin of Midgar. One year ago today, Avalanche had bombed the Sector Five reactor. The golden band still graced his finger, the inscription etched inside the band on the burnished metal were words he knew by heart.

_'Time flows onward while we live and love and eventually say goodbye. Always know that my love for you is eternal and never-ending, beyond time, beyond life. Jacob & Sunami; Midgar 1509' _

He closed his eyes to block out the tears. One year had past. He'd never been talkative. He'd never been one to wear his emotions on his sleeve. He'd grown up in the slums of Midgar, and unlike Reno, Rude had learned that in the circles he moved talking often got a person killed. He learned early on to keep his mouth shut and only speak when necessary. As a result, he was respected and left alone. 

Rude had met Suni during his short stint in Soldier. He remembered so clearly how he'd been assigned to guard duty at the Number Five Reactor on a high security mission. She'd been working in the office, a vision in a green dress, her long, black hair pulled back into a complicated looking braid that actually seemed almost casual. She'd always smiled warmly at him and greeted him each evening when he arrived for his shift. She was beautiful, but it was the warmth of her personality that attracted her to him and drew him in. She always tried to draw him out of his quiet shell, and the friendship had rapidly deepened into something more. 

She'd accepted Reno from the start, laughing and joking with him, yet always making it clear that she was "Jacob's girl". In that, she'd forged a bond with Reno that very few ever had. It was Suni that had gotten Reno to admit that he was actually seeing a woman seriously; one that he hadn't taken to bed on the first date. It had been Suni that Reno had confided his feelings in after his disastrous trip to Corel, and despite his broken heart she had made him feel like a person again. After Suni's death, with no one to keep him on a straight path, Reno had let himself sink back into the abyss. 

Reno had cursed Tifa after the explosion for her involvement, but at the same time, Rude had detected something deeper during their chase across the Planet for Sephiroth and Avalanche. He remembered their conversation in Gongaga. Not the silly one about who they liked that Avalanche and Elena had overheard, but the one in the bar later. Rude had sensed the buried feelings in Reno were starting to surface. Despite his vocal protestations otherwise, Reno had never stopped caring for the busty member of Avalanche, and no amount of alcohol could drown his feelings for her completely. 

_"If you fucking like her so much, why don't you make a move on her?" Reno asked Rude as he downed another shot of liquor. _

_"I'm not going to make a move on my best friend's girl." Rude's reply was atypically long, and had Reno not been under the influence he might have detected the slightest hint of mirth behind Rude's words. _

_"She is not **my** girl!" Reno protested, not realizing that his protest was far too adamant to be believable. _

_This time Rude was definitely hiding a smile, even the drunkenness of Reno's mind couldn't miss it. "She's always been your girl." _

_"Fuck. She's yours if you want her." _

_Rude just laughed. "If you say so." _

_Reno scowled. _

A slight smile escaped the normally impassive visage of Rude's features. Even on this solemn anniversary of his wife's death, the remembrance of Reno's reaction almost a year ago reminded Rude that all was not lost. 

Rude had repeatedly told Reno that he accepted Suni's death, and while he had, that didn't mean that not having her hurt any less. That didn't mean that his constant reminders to Reno weren't also his own attempts at letting go. The impassive expression hid the hurt that was in his heart, and the dark sunglasses that were as much a permanent feature as his bald head and blue Turk suit hid the tears that seemed to well in his eyes as a chronic affliction. 

He'd come up here with the bottle, intending to drink away the pain, but he realized that he couldn't desecrate Suni's memory that way. Instead of drinking it, he tipped the bottle and let the contents run out over the rocks of the cliff. He watched as the liquid flowed over the smaller stones, forming rivers and waterfalls before being absorbed into the dirt. 

Rude let the unbidden tear slip from his eye as he stood and stared at the twisted mass of Midgar before moving back towards it. Nearly a year had passed since they'd started cleaning up the remains of the city. Sector Seven was nearly ready for rebuilding. He looked forward to the fresh start that it symbolized for all of them. 

"Goodbye, my love." He whispered into the darkening night. 

_'Always know that my love for you is eternal and never-ending, beyond time, beyond life.' _The memory of her voice answered, whispering into his mind. 

Rude smiled and walked back towards Midgar. "I will always love you, Sunami."

_'And I you, Jacob.'_


	29. Twenty-Seven - Dreamers

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN - DREAMERS**

_'Imagine there's no heaven … It's easy if you try … No hell below us … Above us only sky … Imagine all the people … Living for today … Imagine there's no countries… It isn't hard to do … Nothing to kill or die for … And no religion too … Imagine all the people … Living life in peace … You may say I'm a dreamer … But I'm not the only one … I hope someday you'll join us … And the world will be as one … Imagine no possessions … I wonder if you can … No need for greed or hunger … A brotherhood of man … Imagine all the people … Sharing all the world … You may say I'm a dreamer … But I'm not the only one … I hope someday you'll join us … And the world will live as one … (John Lennon: 'Imagine')'_

Corel Reactor. Afternoon. 

A string of muffled curses came from inside a piece of machinery in what had been the reactor's core. A minute later the source of the curses emerged, covered in grease and soot. 

"Cid?!" Tifa exclaimed as the pilot made an attempt to wipe the grime from his face with a rag that was already overloaded with dirt and grease. 

Cid smiled at Tifa as he realized who was calling his name. "I'd hug you, but I'm filthy!" He exclaimed, greeting his old friend warmly. "Shera!" He bellowed. "We've got company!" He remembered before he continued yelling that they were in the middle of the reactor and that making tea for their guests would be ridiculous. 

'_Great_.' Reno thought as he realized whom else they'd just encountered. '_Another Avalanche member._' His expression remained sullen and detached as he watched yet another happy reunion between Tifa and her Avalanche friends. First there had been the instant kinship between Tifa and Jessie again, and while he was grateful that the two of them had been able to work things out, it still left him feeling empty inside. She'd also been greeted warmly by Wallace and his kid and even Strife upon their reunions. Sure, Strife had been trying to rekindle something, and she'd used him to make the spiky-haired punk jealous, but she hadn't been accusing Cloud of killing her friends either. After all these happy moments he'd been witness to recently, he didn't think he could handle yet another Avalanche reunion. 

"Fuck." He muttered and slipped back outside to have a smoke. He wished Rude were there. At least then there would be someone to sit in the bar and have a drink with. 

Jessie saw her brother leave the reactor and followed him, not really knowing what need there was for her to be here for the negotiations that were sure to follow. While she would've liked to have seen how the mako reactor had been converted to coal output, the expression on her brother's face was more important than the mechanics of a cold, heartless power plant. 

Shera joined the group, holding out a clean rag to Cid, which he gratefully took and used to wipe off his hands and face. 

"So what brings you to our humble Reactor?" Cid asked Reeve, a strangely jovial expression on his face. "Come to see how things are done?" 

"Well, yes." Reeve answered, surprised to find the pilot in the North Corel Reactor, but all that Barrett had said was beginning to fall into place. There was no one on the Planet that he knew of better suited to the mechanics of the Reactor conversion. At least not anymore. As insane as the man was, Hojo's brilliance had created the fundamental design of the Mako Reactor. Numerous others had known the workings of the Reactors inside and out, but he wasn't sure that all of Midgar's former Reactor experts put together could handle the conversion. But Cid Highwind was a mechanical genius. 

Cid and Barrett both noticed the surprised look on the city planner's face as he looked at the interior of the Reactor. Nothing much had changed, but instead of the massive drainage pools for Mako, there was coal stored there, ready to be burned to generate the much needed power. 

"The Mako?" Reeve asked, speaking in partial sentences out of awe. "How did you drain the Mako pools?" 

Cid shrugged. "We didn't. When we opened up the Reactor to start the conversion, the damned stuff was gone." 

Reeve looked thoughtful as he looked around at all the tubing and wires, impressed at the remarkable job the former Shinra pilot had accomplished. "Can you do this in Midgar?" 

Cid beamed and draped his arm around Shera's shoulders, a move that didn't go unnoticed by Tifa, who stifled the smile that sprang to her lips before Cid could see it. "Of course we can." 

But Cid had seen Tifa's smile as his arm draped casually over Shera's shoulder. He shot a half-hearted growl in her direction, more out of pride than out of any real embarrassment. He'd left the skies after Meteor, intending instead to settle down and remain Planet-bound. Cid had experienced his dream of going into space, and after realizing out there that Shera hadn't been wrong, lazy, or any of the other things he'd called her for years, he'd been determined to make it up to her any way that he could. It had been Shera that had talked him into helping out Barrett with the conversion of the Corel Reactor from Mako energy to coal. 

Reeve chuckled. "I can't promise you riches for it, but I can give you recognition for your hard work. I have eight of these-" Reeve paused, gesturing at the Reactor that surrounded them. "In various stages of repair and working order. If you're looking for a challenge, Midgar's the place." 

"We'll take it." Shera answered before Cid had a chance to protest or reply. She hadn't been back to Midgar in years, and while Meteor had hit the largest city on the Planet the hardest, she had been looking for a decent challenge. Serving Cid tea was fun, but it didn't require a whole lot of effort. "Of course," She glanced at Barrett, "We'll have to finish getting things running at capacity here first." 

Cid nodded in agreement, shocked that Shera had agreed to go back to Midgar. He wasn't sure if she'd ever been back to her hometown since coming to Rocket Town to help build the rocket during Shinra's short-lived race to the stars. 

"I'm not killing the damned monsters and guard robots that inhabit these things." Cid commented to Reeve. "Make sure they're all gone before we arrive." 

"I'll handle that." Cloud spoke up for the first time since entering the Reactor. He'd been quietly studying the interaction between Reno and Tifa since returning from the Gold Saucer, and things didn't add up. Their actions and body language towards one another spoke of enemies, not lovers. Returning to Midgar with the rest of the group would give him a better chance to find an opening back into Tifa's life. 

Tifa looked shocked as Cloud volunteered to clear out the Reactors before the arrival of Cid and Shera. Granted, she was relieved that she wouldn't be assigned to more "monster extermination" duty, but she wasn't sure she wanted Cloud around. If he was, she was certain he would be watching her and Reno, looking for signs of the relationship that she had told him existed. 

She sighed inwardly at the prospect of keeping up the charade. She felt awful for teasing Reno at breakfast that morning, but couldn't help herself. His lack of anger over the kiss the night before had made her wonder, and the fact that he had yet to say anything against her advances piqued her curiosity as to what was going through his mind even more. She feared that he was holding back because the others were around, and that if she cornered him alone, the powder keg of his temper would explode. Maybe there was a way to smooth things over before that happened. What she did know for certain was that she wanted to kiss him again. 

Reeve smiled broadly as the pilot and Shera agreed to come to Midgar once they finished up in North Corel. Midgar would soon have power again. Soon after that there would be running water and building again. The dream of a new Midgar was still alive. Elena would be proud.


	30. Twenty-Eight - Release

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT - RELEASE **

_'Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away … Now it looks as though they're here to stay … Oh, I believe in yesterday… Suddenly, I'm not half the man I used to be … There's a shadow hanging over me … Oh, yesterday came suddenly … Why she had to go I don't know she wouldn't say … I said something wrong, now I long for yesterday … Yesterday, love was such an easy game to play … Now I need a place to hide away … Oh, I believe in yesterday … (The Beatles: 'Yesterday')' _

Beach. Costa del Sol. Afternoon. 

A dark shadow crept across her body, obstructing the sun's rays from reaching her. She looked up to find Reno towering above her. 

"Strife's standing over there. You want to kiss me again?" Reno asked from where he stood above her, purposely blocking the sun's bright rays, trying to hide both the edge that kept creeping into his voice and the fact that he was ogling the skin exposed by the red bikini. Holy, how that brought back memories. Memories he would gladly entertain had circumstances been different. 

"Only if you want me to." Tifa replied to him from where she lay on a towel, trying to add some color to her too-pale skin and slightly irritated that he was blocking the sunshine, even if he had finally shed that awful blue suit for more appropriate beach attire. She had to admit to herself, if not to him, that he looked good. 

He plopped down in the sand next to her. "Go ahead." He stated, keeping all anticipation out of his voice. He'd wanted so badly to kiss her again since their encounter at the Chocobo Races and her antics at breakfast the next morning, but he had kept his distance from her purposely as they'd negotiated with Barrett for an equitable coal contract. 

Reeve was happy with the terms he'd gotten, and they had stopped to spend a few days at Costa del Sol. Strife had agreed to come along to help clear out the Mako reactors, and Jessie had already refused to go back to her "boring life" in Junon. The pilot and his assistant would be joining them in Midgar as soon as the Corel Reactor was properly "tweaked". Life appeared to be slowly returning to normal. And he was still alone. Normal. 

Tifa moved her body so that she was straddling his lap. Feeling almost bad for continuing the charade and messing with the hearts of all three of them, she removed his sunglasses and looked into his eyes as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pressed her lips against his. Her fingers danced up his neck and into his hair, drawing him closer to her. Shocked that she'd actually straddled his lap, his arms snaked around her back, holding her to him while she kissed him with an emotional abandon that he didn't think she'd possessed. His thoughts clouded together into one huge jumbled mass as he kissed her back, enjoying once again the closeness of her. 

All too soon she broke away from the kiss, feeling the hunger she had felt days before creep back into his kiss with a growing urgency. She glanced up to find that Cloud had been watching them, and when her eyes met his, he turned and stalked away up the stairs leading towards town. 

"Don't kiss me like that unless you fucking mean it!" Reno hissed at her after Cloud walked away, all the disappointment, hurt, anger, and bitterness he'd worked so hard to keep inside all these years, expunging itself in his constrained yell. It felt good; it felt right. It was cleansing. "Don't kiss me with that kind passion when you're only trying to make that asshole jealous!" 

He raked his hands through his already-messy hair and refused to meet her gaze. If only she knew what she was doing to him just kissing him like that. 

Tifa was startled by Reno's sudden, and uncharacteristic, emotional outburst. To be honest, so was he. It was everything. Holy, how he just wanted to rewind the last five years… walk away from Shinra, make the woman in front of him his wife. But that was the past, and there was nothing he could do about it now. 

She looked at him sitting in front of her looking so vulnerable, and she knew it was now or never. If she didn't say what he needed to hear, what she truly felt, she doubted she'd get the chance to again. The charade could go on no longer. Tifa took a deep breath and whispered softly, touching his cheek with the backs of her fingers. "I do mean it, Nathan." 

'_Nathan._' Every time she spoke his name it was a benediction to his heart. His head snapped up, not believing what he had just heard. 

"Don't lie to me, Tifa." His tone was cold, tired of having his mind messed with. He wanted to believe, but the past made it so hard to do so. 

"I'm not lying to you." She lifted his chin with her fingers and looked into his eyes, cold with years of hurt, but searching for the truth. "I'm not trying to make him jealous." 

He searched her eyes, looking for the betrayal of her words in those beautiful chocolate-cherry depths, but he could find nothing but truth. Holy, could he believe her? His heart screamed at him to accept the truth that it knew she was telling him. His stubborn pride wouldn't let him let the hurt go. His heart ached for her embrace, her touch, her kind words, her body wrapped around his. His pride demanded an explanation for the hurt and an apology for the murderous accusations, even though he was just as guilty of flinging those, and worse, as she. Even though he knew why she had left him before. He was a Turk, a hired killer of the company that had destroyed her life. 

She was still sitting there, looking at him, her body straddled on his lap waiting for an answer. How easy it would be to wrap his arms around her and hold her tight, letting the forgiveness his heart had already granted flow between them. How easy it would be to kiss her and taste the tang of passion that he had experienced only moments before. So simple to tell her what he felt. To say those words he had said before, words he had meant from the depths of his heart, only to be rejected. 

"Nathan?" She asked when he didn't say anything. 

'_Nathan._' She'd spoken his name again, soft and tender, another benediction to his heart. Did she know what that did to him- hearing his name uttered from her lips? 

"I … can't." He spoke the words out loud without realizing he had. 

"You can't what?" She asked softly, confusion crossing her features. 

"I can't… I can't do this." Holy, how he wanted to tell her. But there was no way he could speak those words to her again. Her rejection of him the last time still scarred his soul. 

"You were right." She said, nearly choking on the words. She took his hands in her own. "We both have blood on our hands. I realized that in the mines. I'm … I'm sorry." 

Reno smiled a genuine smile as relief flooded over his heart hearing those words from her. Jessie had been telling the truth. Not that he'd doubted his sister's word, but hearing those words from the mouth of the woman that drove him insane with desire meant more to him than anything else. 

His arms wrapped around her again, an unconscious, automatic gesture that felt completely like the right thing to do. 

"Nathan," She lifted his head from her shoulder and looked him in the eye once more. "There's something else that I need to tell you." Tifa bit her lip before proceeding, having no idea how to tell him what he needed to know or no idea how he would react. Jessie had been hinting at her for days to tell him this. 

His eyes met hers, seeing the uncertainty and fear in them. His fingers brushed lightly against her face, encouraging her to continue. He didn't know where all of this was headed, but anything had to be better than the constant fighting or, as Jessie had pointed out, the ridiculous game of "cat and mouse" that they had been playing. However, all of his years as a Turk couldn't prepare him for her next confession. 

"You… we... we have a daughter." Tifa spoke, fear still in her eyes, fearing for the worst as she told him what she had kept hidden from almost everyone for nearly the last five years. 

Everything in his body went cold and numb as she spoke the words he'd most never wanted to hear from a woman. He had no clue what to say to her at this moment and although part of him screamed at him not to, Reno left her lying in the sand as he stormed off towards town.


	31. Twenty-Nine - Revelation

_*****_

**CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE - REVELATION **

_'It's now or never … Come hold me tight ... Kiss me, my darling … Be mine tonight … Tomorrow will be too late … It's now or never … My love won't wait ... When I first saw you ... With your smile so tender ... My heart was captured ... My soul surrendered … I spent a lifetime ... waiting for the right time … Now that you're here … The time is here at last … It's now or never … Come hold me tight … Kiss me, my darling … Be mine tonight … Tomorrow will be too late … It's now or never … My love won't wait … Just like a willow … We will cry an ocean … If we lost true love and sweet devotion … Your lips excite me … Let your arms invite me … For who knows when we'll meet again this way … (Elvis Presley' 'It's Now Or Never')' _

Beach. Costa del Sol. Evening. 

"Why didn't you tell me before?" His voice came from behind her, laced with a hurt and coldness he couldn't hide. He sat on the sand next to her, ready to talk if she chose to do so. He still wore his beach clothes from earlier, having gone straight to the bar after storming away. 

That's where Jessie had found him, drowning his troubles in a tall glass of amber. After some careful prodding by his sister, he'd admitted to her what had transpired on the beach prior to his storming away in a fit of anger. She'd looked guiltily at him as she confessed to knowing about it, but that her loyalty to Tifa as a friend prevented her from telling him. She hadn't given him any more information than that, telling him instead that he needed to be talking to Tifa and not drowning his emotions in the bottle. She'd taken the glass and handed it back to the bartender, announcing that he'd had enough and shoved him out of the bar and back towards the beach. 

His sudden reappearance was an interruption to her thoughts as she stared out over the moonlit water. She hadn't expected to hear from him so soon. She hadn't moved from the beach since he'd stormed away hours before after she'd told him the painful truth she'd kept hidden from him. 

"I tried." She spoke softly, sadly, her voice nearly getting lost on the wind. "I called your office. I even went to the Shinra building, but I couldn't get past the front desk. The guard dog receptionists wouldn't even take a written message for you." 

His expression was filled with sadness as he nodded in understanding, remembering the army of receptionists employed by Shinra throughout the entire building. It didn't matter if they were cute, giggly young girls or serious old matrons; they all had the same order drilled into in their heads. No one got messages to the Turks unless the Turks had specifically authorized it. 

Adding even more fuel to the fire was the fact he had been a hot commodity throughout the old Shinra Headquarters. Any female he smiled at or talked to had been instantly perceived as a threat to their own chances of a night with him. He could only imagine the thoughts running through the minds of the vindictive bitches when Tifa showed up at the front desk. She hadn't lost any of her beauty in the last five years, and it hadn't been a secret that a serious relationship had just ended. Although her name wasn't known, there wasn't a woman in that building that hadn't wanted to try to fill the void left by Tifa Lockheart. At that moment, he hated every single one of them. 

His hand moved to touch the silken strands of her hair, recapturing them from the breeze that claimed them as their own. She didn't protest his touch, and from the way she stared out over the waves, he wasn't sure that her mind had even registered his touch on her hair. 

"What happened to her?" His voice was choked, his heart hurting from all the '_what could have beens'_ that had been filling his mind all afternoon. He'd always ragged on Rude for allowing himself to be tied down by the old ball and chain routine, but all afternoon, he'd been wishing that he'd done the same. 

"A life of poverty in the slums wasn't what I wanted for our daughter. I didn't want her to have to grow up like you did or live like I did." A tear slipped from her eye as she spoke, drawing her knees closer to her chest and wrapping her arms tightly around them. She gazed over the sea, her eyes unfocused as she watched the waves break against themselves. She continued. "I gave her up for adoption to a well-off family on the Plate." 

He released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding as he had expected her to say that Wallace's daughter was really theirs. Tifa and the little girl had an amazing rapport, and it would be like the former Avalanche member to leave her child in the care of someone she could trust. He was almost surprised when she told him that she'd allowed their child to be adopted. 

"Do you know who they are?" Reno asked, knowing that most adoptions in Midgar were highly private and adoptive parents often weren't told of the birthplaces of the children they were adopting. Despite all the social ills in Midgar under Shinra's regime, the social workers had done many of the children born in the slums a favor by adhering to this policy. They were the lucky ones. They got out. 

Tifa shook her head. "All I know is that they worked for Shinra." She laughed hollowly as she turned her head to look at him. "Ironic, isn't it?" 

He nodded, wondering if his daughter's adoptive parents ever wondered about their child's true parentage. "Did you see her before you gave her up?" He asked, looking for any shred of information about the child he had fathered, but never known about until today. 

Tifa nodded. "They let me hold her a few times, and I snuck down to the nursery to watch her." She admitted, remembering how alone she had felt. She remembered wistfully wishing that he was there to share in the joy- that they'd been a family, and that it wasn't just her, giving up her child to strangers in hopes of saving their innocent daughter from the hard life of Midgar's slums. 

He heard the hurt in her voice as she spoke. His fingers brushed softly against her cheek. "What did she look like?" 

He needed the information like a drug. He'd always used alcohol to wash away the pain, but all it ever did was make him comfortably numb. He couldn't use that anymore. He'd tried this afternoon, but his sister had saved him from the trip down that lonely road. Instead he sat on a beach in the town where it had all conceivably started as a truth hidden from him was revealed. 

"Beautiful. She didn't have any hair, but she had the most beautiful eyes." Tifa paused, a frown crossing her face as tears fell in remembrance of the few times she'd gotten to hold their daughter. "Your eyes." 

"Guess that means you weren't sleeping with Rude." The usual Reno-esque comment slipped so naturally from his lips that he didn't even realize he'd said it until she laughed. 

"No, not Rude." She responded, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. He thought that he'd never loved her so much. She'd forgiven the out of place comment that had slipped out, and if what she'd said earlier was true, she'd forgiven him as well. 

He caught her off guard as he pulled her close, wrapping his arms protectively around her and drawing her close to him. _'Nothing will ever hurt you again. Not the vindictive receptionists. Not Strife. And especially not me.'_

"Do you think we'll find her?" Tifa asked him, her voice muffled against his chest, but interrupting his thoughts all the same. She was afraid to speak the thought that had run through her mind since Meteor. She hoped with all of her heart that their daughter had survived. 

She knew that they had no right to barge into their daughter's life, but with the shambles of Midgar and the amount of people that had died during the Meteor attack, she felt justified in knowing if the child she had carried and given birth to had survived. 

He felt the dampness of her tears against his chest as he smoothed her hair with his hand. "She's the kid of a Turk." He reassured her, not speaking the same thoughts that he suspected were already running through her mind. "Even if she wasn't," He paused to brush his lips against the top of her head, sending shivers down her spine as he did so. "You've got the Turks on your side. We'll find her." 

He had a good idea of what shambles the Shinra records were probably in, but he also knew what Elena was capable of. The blackmail trick with Tseng aside, Elena had gained Turk status by her easy ability to dig up information. If the trail was still there, Elena could find it. Hope welled in his heart, but he didn't dare tell the broken woman sobbing against him. He didn't want to dash her hopes if the Shinra records turned out to be useless. 

He felt her smile against his chest as he held her. She was no longer the enemy; no longer the one that blamed him for the deaths of thousands. She understood that she was as much to blame as he. As she cried for the daughter she'd given up, wanting nothing more than to give the child a chance, Tifa Lockheart was once again the vulnerable girl from Nibelheim he'd fallen in love with five years before. 

_'Love.'_ He had sworn five years ago to shut that emotion completely out of his life, especially where she was concerned. But, as it barreled into his mind with the force of the eleven o'clock train to Sector Seven, he knew. He knew deep in his heart that he loved her. Since she had left, he had sought absolution in the bottom of a glass and in countless, meaningless other women. None of them had ever come remotely close to providing him with the feelings he felt when he was with her. No one else had ever managed to incite in him the intense emotion, be it anger or absolution, that she could. None of his vices had ever been able to make him forget. As he held her in his arms as she cried, he finally knew the truth. She had been the one then. She was the one now. And she would be the one forever.

"I love you." He whispered to her, the words slipping from his lips without him being conscious that he had actually spoken them. He went cold with fear as he realized he'd spoken them, his soul bare before her. 

She looked up at him, her eyes still glistening with the tears. Though his suddenly spoken words shocked her, she knew he meant them. Those were words Nathan Reno didn't use often. She smiled softly, knowing there was no way she could deny either him or herself this. Shinra was dead. Avalanche was dispersed, the members focused, for the most part, on their own lives. Midgar was rebuilding. The past was irrelevant now. No more charades. All that mattered was her. Him. Them.

He waited for what seemed like an eternity before she raised her head. Her lips met his in a tender kiss before she replied. "I love you, Nathan."

Rude and Jessie were going to have a field day, but neither of them minded in the least.


	32. Thirty - Brand New Day

_*****_

**CHAPTER THIRTY – BRAND NEW DAY **

_'How many of you people out there … Been hurt in some kind of love affair? … And how many times did you swear … That you'd never love again? … How many lonely, sleepless nights? … How many lies, how many fights? … And why would you want to … Put yourself through all of that again? … Love is pain I hear you say … Love has a cruel and bitter way of … Paying you back for all the faith you ever had in your brain … How could it be that what you need the most … Can leave you feeling just like a ghost? … You never want to feel so sad and lost again … It could happen to you, … Just like it happened to me, … There is simply no immunity … There's no guarantee. … I say love is such a force if you should find yourself in it … You need some time for reflection … You say, baby wait a minute, wait a minute … I'm the present to your future … You're the wound and I'm the suture … You're the magnet to my pole … I'm the devil in your soul … You're the pupil I'm the teacher … You're the church and I'm the preacher … You're the flower I'm the rain … You're the tunnel I'm the train … (Sting: 'Brand New Day' heavily edited for length!)'_

Morning. Inn. Costa del Sol. 

Reno was sitting in the bed, his back resting on the pillows propped against the headboard. One knee was bent in what he considered to be his customary pose when he was relaxing in bed, something he hadn't had the luxury of doing in a long time. One wrist was draped over his bent knee; the other, that would have normally held a cigarette, lightly rested on the sleeping beauty lying next to him. He'd been awake for hours, studying her and thinking about the past. Thinking about what their daughter might look like. Thinking how damned lucky he was to finally have her back. 

A shaft of sunlight from the open window glinted off the Mythril band on his finger. He tipped his head back and looked up at the ceiling. Holy, he couldn't believe he'd done it. He couldn't believe he'd done it and been totally sober at the time. 

The gentle breeze brushed against her bare skin, awakening her. She was momentarily disoriented as she felt the cool breeze from the open window against her skin and the warmth of a hand resting in her hair. She rolled over, disturbing the hand that moved seemingly of its own accord out of the way, only to find him staring at the ceiling. 

"Morning." She greeted sleepily. 

He'd been aware of her moving and moved his head to look at her. "Morning, sunshine." He responded using the greeting he'd used during their first trip to Costa del Sol five years prior. 

"You're not a dream, are you?" She asked him, trying to regain her mental bearings. It felt very strange to wake up next to him again. 

"No, most consider me their worst nightmare." He grinned at her, sliding down to lay next to her, but feeling almost strange to be bantering with and welcoming the company of a woman still in bed with him in the morning. 

"Not mine. At least not anymore." She responded, brushing a lock of red hair out of his face, struck by his words. 

The suffering visage of Vincent Valentine snuck into her thoughts, and she wondered what had happened to him. No one claimed to have heard anything from him since he disappeared after Meteor. She hoped he was all right. Though she doubted it, she hoped he'd one day find the absolution he so desperately deserved. 

The glint of sunlight off the stone set into the band on her finger brought her back to the man with her. She gazed at the ring, asking him softly, "We really did, didn't we?" 

He cupped her face in his hands and she could feel the cool metal on his finger against her warm cheek. "Yes, Mrs. Reno, we did." 

_'Tifa Reno.'_ She let the name sift through her mind, trying to get used to it as she kissed him. 

Kissing her, holding her… it was such bliss. He could easily spend the whole day wrapped up in her, making sweet love to her, but reality was that everyone thought they were still enemies, and Reeve's plans for the day included leaving for Junon. He expected a search party at any moment, and didn't want to start something he was certain he wouldn't be able to finish.

"Not that I don't want to spend the whole day with you here, but we'd better get moving," He told her, reluctantly breaking away from her sweet kiss. "Before they think I murdered you and come look-" 

The knock sounded on the door before he could finish his sentence. 

"Too late." Tifa told him, laughing softly. "Jessie?" 

"No one else would have the courage to come to the room of **the Turk**." Reno grinned as he got up to open the door, still clad in only black silk boxers. "They all fear me!" 

"You talk to your sister. I'm going to take a shower." She told him, getting up and heading towards the bathroom. 

He grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards him before she could get far. "Oh, no, you don't. We do this together." 

He was terrified of facing his sister, and wanted his bride right there with him as they told her. Jessie was going to be both ecstatic and hurt that they hadn't told her, but he was fairly certain that another ceremony- one more public- would smooth any ruffled feathers of Jessie's or anyone else. He groaned inwardly as he realized Rude was never going to let him live this one down… eloping in Costa del Sol with his "enemy" was up there as the craziest thing he'd ever done. And the best thing. 

On the plus side, he could get a lot of mileage torturing Strife with it. Unless the spiky-haired Soldier wash out decided to come after him with that huge sword of his. Reno grinned. Metal was a great conductor of electricity. That could be amusing. 

Tifa wrapped a robe around her body as Reno went to open the door, watching him move across the room. He moved with a grace that she could only imagine came from the need for stealth in his former line of work. Although she didn't care to admit it to him, Tifa knew he was a formidable fighter in battle, both in physical battles and verbal spats. 

He opened the door to find, as suspected, his sister standing there with a worried expression on her face. 

"Have you seen Tifa? She didn't come back to the Villa last night." Jessie spoke quickly, trying to look into the room, but her brother's body was blocking her view. "We're all really worried about her." 

"I wouldn't worry. She can take care of herself." 

"Nathan!" Jessie quickly grew exasperated with him, having no time for his games this morning. "The last time I saw you was when I pushed you out of the bar. Did you find her?" 

"She's right here." Reno smirked as he opened the door wider to let his sister in, deciding from the tone of his little sister's voice that he shouldn't mess with her about Tifa's whereabouts anymore. 

Tifa had noticed how Nathan had kept his hand on the door as he'd spoken to his sister. Whether that had been a natural move or an attempt to hide the silver-toned band on his finger, she didn't know, but in a move of shyness as the door was opened further, she pulled her hands behind her back as the robe was conveniently lacking any pockets. 

"Tifa!" Jessie gushed. "I was so worried about you when you didn't come back to the Villa. I was up all night. I know I should've come looking for you sooner, but-" She glanced at her brother who stood at the door, a bemused expression on his face as his sister went on and on. "What's that look for?" She asked, noting his expression. 

"I wasn't going to kill her, little sister." Reno moved back towards the women in his room and stood behind the one that had driven him crazy for the past year. 

"I didn't think you would, Nathan." Jessie told him, shooting him a look that asked him if he thought she distrusted her own twin. "I was worried about the other weirdos out there." 

"Are you saying **I'm** a weirdo?" Reno shot Jessie a mock hurt look as he took Tifa's hands in his own behind her back and brought them around to the front of her body. 

"Oh, I give up!" Jessie rolled her eyes at her brother, thinking there was something really different about him this morning, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Sure, Tifa was standing in his room wearing a robe the morning after she'd confessed to him that they'd had a daughter a few years back, but there was something else. Something that she hadn't seen in years- the mischievous sparkle was back in his eye. That usually spelled trouble. 

Reno shrugged, moving his and Tifa's arms so that the rings on their fingers would be very obvious if his sister looked. He couldn't resist messing with her. "If you give up, then we won't tell you." 

"I'm not dumb, Nathan." Jessie went on, oblivious to the metal that her brother was trying to bring to her attention. "Obviously, you've managed to make up and I hope that the two of you have finally told each other how you feel and will give up the ridiculous game of cat and mouse you've been playing." 

"Um, yeah." Tifa smiled softly, unable to contain it anymore. "Nathan and I got married last night." 

Jessie's mouth dropped open in shock as she finally noticed what her brother had been trying to show her while she'd been rambling. Reno had never heard his sister utter that sound, but Jessie literally squealed in delight as she grabbed their entwined hands and looked at the rings. 

"This isn't a joke? You two really did?" Jessie looked at them, looking for a sign that they were playing a major trick on her. 

Reno shook his head. "No tricks, Jess. It's the real thing." He pointed to the long dresser in the room of the inn, moving Tifa's arm with his as he did so, unwilling to let go of her for even a moment. "The marriage license is over there." 

Jessie wrapped her arms around both of them in a hug. "Finally! I was only hoping you'd admit that you loved one another, but this is wonderful! 

"We didn't intend to get married, but the chapel was there and it just felt like the right thing to do." Tifa explained to her new sister-in-law. 

"You **have** to tell me all about it!" Jessie's eyes gleamed in excitement. She was slightly hurt that they hadn't told her beforehand, but since it wasn't pre-meditated, she'd forgive them. 

"You two have a nice girl talk," Reno told them, kissing Tifa on the cheek before walking towards the bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower." 

Tifa watched him disappear into the bathroom, vowing to get him back later for bowing out on her when he hadn't let her do the same earlier. She hoped he enjoyed it.


	33. Interlude Two - Timing

_*****_

**INTERLUDE TWO - TIMING **

_'You're having my baby … My baby is having my baby … Only God knows how much I love you … Mothers never mean so much to me … And for you to bring forth a life from me … Would be a honor to me ladie's soul, ooh … If you go away, hey … If you've got to twist and turns, we'll be ok … Let's hold hands together and we'll pray (Case; 'Having My Baby')'_

City Hall. Midgar. 

He stepped out of the building and into the sunlight that bathed Midgar in radiant light. He pulled his sunglasses from their resting place in the inner pocket of his neat grey suit and placed them over his eyes. He smiled as he looked up towards the sky, enjoying the sight of white clouds skimming their way across the blue sky that was still only slightly tainted from the coal smoke spewing from the converted old Number Six and Seven Reactors. 

The two reactors were providing enough power for Midgar for now, but the Number Eight was scheduled to be back online soon to handle the massive growth Midgar was experiencing. People were moving back into Midgar from Kalm and Junon looking for work and a chance at rebuilding their lives. Jobs were everywhere; in every industry. He himself needed more support staff to handing his ever-growing workload as Chief of City Security. 

He'd been working longer and longer hours lately trying to stay caught up, but he'd promised her that today he'd take her out for dinner. Though normally mild mannered, the hormones raging their way through her body had been making his wife harder and harder to get along with. 

Birds chirped at him as he made his way towards the parking garage down the street where his car was parked. After a long day at the office dealing with the myriad of problems that always seemed to crop up, he was ready to go home. He hated more and more being away from his wife as she grew closer and closer to the date that their child would be born. 

His PHS rang and he flipped it open to be greeted with a frantic voice. 

"What do you mean? It's time? You have three weeks!" He responded to the voice on the other end of the line. 

"But we have plans for tonight!" He responded stupidly to the voice on the line as if that very idea would stop his child from being born today. 

"I'll meet you there." 

"Ten minutes." He glanced at his watch. "Fifteen if there's traffic."

He shut off the phone and dashed towards his car.


	34. Thirty-One - Return

_*****_

**CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE - RETURN**

_'It used to seem to me … That my life ran on too fast … And I had to take it slowly … Just to make the good parts last … But when you're born to run … It's so hard to just slow down … So don't be surprised to see me … Back in that bright part of town … I'll be back in the high life again … All the doors I closed one time will open up again … I'll be back in the high life again … All the eyes that watched me once will smile and take me in … And I'll drink and dance with one hand free … Let the world back into me … And on I'll be a sight to see … Back in the high life again … You used to be the best … To make life be life to me … And I hope that you're still out there … And you're like you used to be … We'll have ourselves a time … And we'll dance 'til the morning sun … And we'll let the good times come in … And we won't stop 'til we're done … We'll be back in the high life again … All the doors I closed one time will open up again … We'll be back in the high life again … All the eyes that watched us once will smile and take us in … And we'll drink and dance with one hand free … And have the world so easily … And oh we'll be a sight to see … Back in the high life again … (Steve Winwood; 'Back in the High Life')'_

Mayor's Tent. Shantytown. Afternoon. 

She tried burying herself in the stack of reports scattered over the top of Reeve's usually neat desk. Elena was exhausted from the demands placed on her by the citizen groups that were developing— 'Save Wall Market', 'Citizens for Electrical Power', and 'Restore the Shinra Building'. She didn't understand the last group, and was starting to fear that these people would become militant. Rude had been quieter than normal, and she was worried about him as well. She would be so relieved when Reeve returned with Reno and Tifa, if they hadn't killed each other, that is. 

"Elena?" As if she had summoned him with her thoughts, Reno walked into the mayor's tent and slouched in a chair. 

Elena looked up from the paperwork she was sifting through. "You're back!" She looked around for Reeve. "Where's the mayor?" 

Reno smirked as the former Turk looked around for their fearless leader, noting Elena's tired appearance. Sleep and a good lay would do her good. "He's on his way. Don't worry. Your love muffin is fine." 

"He's not my love muffin, Reno!" Elena turned the color of the red ink on the reports she had been marking up. 

"Yeah, okay, whatever." The smirk was still embedded on his face as the blonde buried herself back in the reports, still blushing furiously. He opened his mouth to say something more, but Elena spoke before he could. He hoped he wasn't losing his touch. 

"How did the trip go?" Elena asked Reno when it became obvious that he wasn't going to leave the makeshift mayor's office. 

Reno's smirk stayed firmly planted on his lips as he gave her a quick rundown of the trip. "Met up with my sister in Junon-" 

"You have a sister?" 

"Tsk tsk. The great Elena didn't dig up her facts very well, did she? I'm disappointed in you. Or were you just digging up dirt on Tseng? Jessie. Honorary Turk and acting Avalanche member. Wounded during the Sector Seven incident." 

Elena blushed again as Reno pointed the obvious out to her. Despite that she was an information hound, she hadn't gone through any official records to find the dirt she'd used to blackmail Tseng with. Gossip had fueled that mission, and careful research had given her the facts that she needed. 

Reno suppressed the laugh that threatened to erupt over Elena's reddened cheeks. "Ran into Strife at the Gold Saucer, and he's returned with us. Got the coal contract. Highwind's the genius who's converted the Corel Reactor to burn coal instead of Mako so he's on his way to Midgar as well. It's going to be an Avalanche invasion." 

Elena ignored Reno's commentary of Avalanche, but there was something less militant about his tone when talking of them. She decided to attribute it to the fact that he'd been sleeping on real mattresses and showering in real showers. "Reeve got the coal contract?" She was so proud of him. 

"You should be proud of him." Reno smirked at her. "He did a great job of dealing with Wallace. We should have power as soon as Highwind is done 'tweaking' the Corel Reactor and gets his flyboy ass to Midgar." 

"I am." Elena responded, turning her attention back to her papers again, pondering something. Reno seemed different. Though he was full of his usual remarks, they seemed to be more directed at her relationship with Reeve, and not at her nature. That was… odd. 

"Hey, 'Lena?" Reno asked. 

"What, Reno?" Elena asked sharply, wondering what sort of taunting he was going to subject her to now. 

"You know when you asked me to be civil to Tifa?" 

"Yes." Elena responded, not really surprised that he'd remembered that. Reno rarely forgot **anything**, much to her usual chagrin. 

"And I got angry with you?" Reno's tone was almost that of a small child asking a million questions for the sole purpose of being a nuisance. 

"Yes, Reno." 

"I'm sorry for getting upset." 

"I'm sorry for calling you both my friend in the same thought." Elena responded, wondering where this line of conversation was going. She had never heard Reno apologize, nor had she ever heard rumors of it happening. 

"It's okay. I married her. Is that civil enough for you?" 

Elena's jaw dropped to the desk, but she quickly recovered. "Don't mess with me, Reno. I've had the worst time with Reeve gone. There are protests over Wall Market, and the blackout, and Rude's been even harder to talk to than usual…" Elena dropped her head to her hands, cradling it. "I don't know how Reeve does it." 

Reno's expression was serious as he laid his hand on the desk, sliding his had so that the ring on his finger was directly under her face. He felt like a silly schoolgirl showing off an engagement ring by doing so. However, Elena wasn't likely to believe him unless he did. 

"I really did, 'Lena." He spoke softly to her without any traces of his usual sarcastic mirth. "And I was sober at the time." 

Elena looked at the Mythril band that adorned his finger and then at his face. Seeing that Reno was, for once, serious, she rushed out of the tent without another word. Despite the ring and Reno's serious expression, there was no way that she was going to believe this until she'd talked to Tifa. 

Reno couldn't contain the laugh that escaped as Elena rushed out of the tent. She'd been his partner and friend, but Elena too seemed to have become very good friends with Tifa. He was a little disappointed that Elena had rushed out of the tent so fast since he'd wanted to ask her about digging up some old information, but there would be time for that later. Let the women have their girl talk.

_'One more to go.'_ He thought as he left the tent in search of Rude. _'Fuck.'_ He thought as words from Elena's earlier ramble sunk in and he realized the date. He really needed to find his friend. 


	35. Thirty-Two - Frustration

_*****_

**CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO - FRUSTRATION **

_'Your words to me just a whisper … Your faces so unclear … I try to pay attention … Your words just disappear … 'Cause its always raining in my head … Forget all the thing's I should have said … So I speak to you in riddles because … My words get in my way … I smoke the whole thing to my head and feel it … wash away 'cause I don't take anymore … of this, I want to come apart … or dig myself a little hole … inside your precious heart … 'Cause its always raining in my head … Forget all the things I should have said … I am nothing more than a little boy inside … That cries out for attention … though I always try to hide … 'Cause I talk to you like children … Though I don't know how I feel … But I know I'll do the right thing … If the right thing is revealed … Cause its always raining in my head … Forget all the things I should have said … Never again, trusted in you … Fuck everything you think I should be … I stand, never again, never again … Can't Believe … (Staind: 'Epiphany')'_

Church. Slums. Late Morning. 

"You promised," He whispered into the empty church. "You promised to come back when it was all over. Where are you, Aeris?" 

As usual there was no answer. The silence was deafening in his ears as he kneeled down to touch the flowers blooming in the flowerbed, Aeris' gift, her legacy, to the slums of Midgar. The petals caressed his hand in the same way her fingers had the night of their date at Gold Saucer, just a few days before her death at the sword of Sephiroth. 

He sighed. Aeris was dead. Tifa was married. Married to that asshole Turk Reno no less. He could understand if it had been Reeve she'd chosen or Vincent or Barrett, but the Turk. He truly wondered if she'd lost her mind over the last year having been taken into the Midgar family, into the remnants of Shinra like she had. She claimed friendship with Elena, and wore the ring of Reno. Despite that Tifa looked happy, it still rankled that she'd chosen Reno over him. He was Cloud. Her childhood friend. The one she'd helped in the Lifestream. The one who'd left her standing on a field outside of Midgar a year ago. 

'_So maybe I wasn't the best to her._' But he'd had to know. He couldn't settle into a life with Tifa without making sure that Aeris hadn't returned to them. He couldn't walk away from that possibility; couldn't leave her stranded in the abandoned city if she had come back. But she hadn't. He'd been greeted with nothing but silence as he'd entered the hallowed streets of the Forgotten Capitol. The shell houses were all empty and her body still rested at the bottom of the lake. 

He'd realized as he stood there, looking into the crystalline blue depths of the lake that he'd been chasing perfection, a dream he could never have. There had been no glorious resurrection of the flower girl, and there would be no "happily ever after" for him with her. What he had been searching for had always been right there with him, and he'd pushed it aside. 

Cloud had stayed in the City of the Ancients for some time, constructing a small monument near the edge of the lake to his fallen friend. Afterwards, he had traveled, aimless for some time, finally arriving at the Gold Saucer. He'd wanted to return to Midgar and tell Tifa how he felt, but he hadn't been able to gather up the courage. When she'd come to him, the words poured out, but he'd been rejected in favor of that despicable Turk. 

He'd helped keep a motley group of people together during the Meteor Crisis a year ago, but in the end he was the one left alone. 

The doors of the church swung open, and he was only slightly aware of the sound as he tended to a small patch of flowers. The flowerbed was remarkably well tended for being in the abandoned church. 

"They're all waiting for you." Jessie's soft voice spoke to him, interrupting him from his reverie over Aeris and Tifa. "Reeve doesn't want to start the ceremony without you." 

"I wasn't planning on attending." He answered, not looking at her. 

"Sector Seven is cleared." Jessie paused, unsure of what to say next. She'd been sent to retrieve Cloud from the church, having been selected because she was the only one that had any chance of getting through to him. He refused to speak to Tifa these days, he'd never been close to Reeve, and the others were Turks. "It's a historic event." 

"Historic." He repeated, scowling. "The woman I fought with to save it is married to the man that destroyed it." 

Jessie touched his hand that was so lovingly tending to Aeris' flowers. She'd never gotten to meet Aeris, but Tifa had told her about the Ancient during their trip to North Corel. She'd been told that this was considered 'Aeris' Church' and the flowerbed Cloud tended had been hers. 

"He was only doing his job, Cloud." Jessie spoke softly, knowing she was treading on dangerous ground. Cloud had difficulty accepting her own relationship to Reno. "Do you think Nathan enjoys having the blood of so many on his hands?" 

"Go ahead. Defend him." Cloud hacked at a weed that dared to grow amidst the beauty of Aeris' flowers. 

"It's not a defense. It's the truth." Reno spoke from behind them and both Cloud and Jessie jumped at the sound of his voice. Neither had heard him enter. He liked it that way. 

"Nathan!" Jessie was shocked to see her brother standing in the church. "What are you doing here?" 

"You're taking too long." Reno shrugged. "I was sent to make sure all was well." 

"I'm not going." Cloud repeated for Reno's benefit. 

"Suit yourself." Reno responded, signaling to his sister to tell the others they'd be along shortly. Jessie nodded and departed the church. 

Reno dropped to a seated position, bending one knee and leaving one leg sprawled out in front of him. He looked over at Cloud. "I'll just stay here with you and keep you company." 

"Don't you have a ceremony to attend?" Cloud asked, trying to ignore his enemy. 

"Don't you?" Reno retorted. 

Cloud shrugged. "I only came back as a mercenary. My job is to kill the monsters in the Reactors. Nothing more." 

"Fuck, Strife. Don't lie to me like that. You came back because of her." 

"I came back for the gil. I would expect **you** to understand that, Reno." Cloud's tone was cold, trying to hide the emotion from both himself and from Reno. 

"I do understand that, Strife. Very well." Reno paused, trying to figure out the best way to drive his point into that spiky head of Cloud's. 

"Then why are we having this conversation?" 

Reno was ready to pull his Electro-Mag rod and fry Cloud's ass into oblivion, but he'd promised his wife that he would try to be nice to her friends. "You know damned well why." 

Cloud shrugged, tugging another weed out by its roots. Tugging it too hard, he accidentally pulled the roots of neighboring flowers up as well. He hastily replanted the disrupted flowers, gently packing the dirt around them to protect them. 

"You left her in search of a corpse. What did you expect her to do? Wait for you to come to your senses? She's a beautiful woman, Strife. Far better than the likes of me deserves." 

"I'll never accept you, Reno." Cloud told him, his words a grudging admission that Reno was right. He had left Tifa to go searching for the remnants of a brief past with Aeris, hoping to Holy that he would find the impossible- that Aeris had been resurrected- only to be disappointed when he'd finally decided to return to the one he had left heartbroken in his wake. 

"I don't expect you to. But Tifa… she still considers you a friend. Don't make me hurt you, Strife." 

"Is that a threat?" Cloud's Mako-enhanced blue eyes flashed in challenge. 

"Only if you keep hurting her." 

"I could mop the floor with you, Reno." 

"Save it." He waved his hand dismissively, the ethereal light glinting off the band on his finger. "I've been listening to that for the last year. You saved the world, but I'm still a sneaky, underhanded Turk. Besides," Reno paused, putting on his trademark cocky grin. "Killing me still wouldn't get you the girl." 

"I'd have the satisfaction of killing you." 

Reno laughed, unable to resist the taunt that sprang to his lips. "Satisfaction doesn't wrap itself around you and keep you warm at night."

Cloud growled and shot Reno a threatening look as he got up and left the church. He'd rather go to the ceremony than listen to Reno rub in his relationship with Tifa any more. He was certain it couldn't be any worse than the current conversation. Besides, it was about time he got some recognition for saving the world. Maybe the ceremony was just the thing for him after all.


	36. Thirty-Three - Enlightenment

_*****_

**CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE – ENLIGHTENMENT **

_'We didn't start the fire … It was always burning … Since the world's been turning … We didn't start the fire … Well we didn't light it … But we tried to fight it … (Billy Joel: 'We Didn't Start the Fire' [Edited])'_

Sector Seven. Midgar. Late Morning. 

Reeve once again stood upon a make-shift platform as he addressed the populace of Midgar, nearly the same as he had done a year ago. Instead of a grassy field with the hulking devastation of the city behind him, he stood near the remains of the Shinra building and the central plate support. The population fanned out in front of him, a sea of people standing amongst the skeleton forms of new buildings, waiting for their mayor to speak. 

Reeve had toured the ground of Sector Seven, the place where Midgar would be reborn. Midgar's city engineers, remnants of the old Midgar, had declared it ready for building weeks before and they had already begun, the skeleton forms testament to the resiliency of the citizens of Midgar. 

The first shipment of Mythril beams and girders had been shipped from the factory in Kalm, where all had celebrated being back at work again. They'd had a groundbreaking ceremony a few weeks before crews had been assigned to rebuilding Sector Seven. But today was different. Today the mayor had a much bigger surprise for the displaced citizenry of Midgar. 

The gentle din of conversation quieted as the Turks, Tifa, and Cloud took their places on the platform with the mayor. 

"A year ago Meteor destroyed our homes, our city." Reeve began in a voice laced with confidence and something more than just blind hope. "We have spent the last year working together to clean up the damage, and while it's far from complete, we stand here today, gathered on the land that is serving as the first phase of Midgar's glorious rebirth." 

He paused to look over the sea of faces in the crowd, noting their rapt attention and feeling anchored by the support. 

"I commend all of you for contributing to the efforts of restoring our glorious city. The Mythril Mines have been reopened and raw materials are once again being brought into Midgar and being sold to other cities, bringing much needed gil into both Midgar and Kalm." 

Reeve looked at the people gathered on the podium with him, the people that had been on his side for the past year and, despite their differences, doing their part for the city. He had been shocked, but pleased when Tifa and Reno had announced their marriage. He took it as a sign that their fighting over who was at fault for the destruction of Midgar was over. He glanced at Elena whose smile beamed into his heart, giving him the strength of mind to continue his speech. 

"Many of you have been into my office and seen the paper model I have created of the new Midgar. You have seen that once the debris of the Shinra Building behind me is removed, a memorial park is to be created in its place. You have seen the heart of the city's industrial and commercial cores. You have seen the residential neighborhoods- both in high-rises and idyllic suburban homes." 

The population stood enraptured as the mayor spoke. He painted for them a picture that many had only dreamed about. The citizens of the slums, the people of the plate- both classes had been deprived something vital by the twisted ambitions of Shinra, but this man that stood before him was promising to give that something back. 

"However, what you have not seen is any form of power plant. I know of the unrest that is circulating due to this problem. Mako has been banned as a form of power, but I recently returned from a trip to North Corel where a contract for coal was negotiated. On this trip, I witnessed first hand how the Mako Reactor in the Corel Mountains had been converted to burn coal. That reactor is working at near perfect efficiency, and the team of engineers and mechanics responsible for that conversion is –" 

Reeve was interrupted by a loud crackle of electricity as the remains of the Shinra building became partially illuminated behind him. The crowd of people parted as a man walked through them, cursing, until he came to stand at the foot of the platform. 

"Reactor Seven is back online." Cid Highwind stated, rubbing his perennially dirty face with a cloth pulled from his rear pocket. "Damn Shera got something else right." 

Reeve laughed in relief as the crowd stood awestruck at the illuminated wreckage behind the mayor. 

Tifa laughed at her old friend as he emerged from the crowd of people. Leave it to Cid to make a spectacle out of getting the first power plant back online. 

She felt Reno relax beside her. He'd gone into "all senses alert" mode as the old Shinra Building had illuminated. She took his hand and smiled at him, reassuring him that all was well. 

"It ain't running at one hundred percent." Cid explained, but you'll be able to build them buildings you got started there without all that elbow grease." Cid grinned as he faced the crowd. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a reactor to tweak." 

The crowd parted again to allow Cid access back to the Number Seven Reactor. Somewhere in the crowd the chant of "Cid" started as he entered the parted crowd, and by the time he disappeared, it had reached a deafening crescendo. Those in the back of the crowd were treated to a rare moment as Cid blushed before entering the maze that would lead back to the reactor's core. 

Once the crowd had quieted down again, Reeve addressed them once more, not sure how he could top Cid's performance. 

"You heard the man!" Reeve exclaimed. "Midgar's got power! Let's do something with it!" 

A cheer rose up through the crowd once again. Soon Midgar would be filled with the sounds of jackhammers and drills and hammers. The skeletons would take shape and become buildings- homes, stores, factories, and restaurants. The hard-packed dirt beneath their feet would be paved with streets and sidewalks. Planter boxes would appear springing forth life in the form of trees and flowers. Life would once again return to normal as the people moved from the shantytown and back into the city. 

Reeve stood there, smiling as the crowd dispersed and returned to their jobs. Elena came to stand next to him, his real rock throughout the past year. She smiled at him and for the first time, he took her hand in his own. 

There was still a long journey ahead of them, but Midgar, it seemed, would be just fine.


	37. Epilogue - Birth

_*****_

**EPILOGUE - BIRTH**

_'I think I'll take a moment, celebrate my age ... The ending of an era and the turning of a page ... Now it's time to focus in on where I go from here ... Lord have mercy on my next thirty years ... Hey my next thirty years I'm gonna have some fun ... Try to forget about all the crazy things I've done ... Maybe now I've conquered all my adolescent fears ... And I'll do it better in my next thirty years ... My next thirty years I'm gonna settle all the scores ... Cry a little less, laugh a little more ... Find a world of happiness without the hate and fear ... Figure out just what I'm doing here ... In my next thirty years ... Oh my next thirty years, I'm gonna watch my weight ... Eat a few more salads and not stay up so late ... Drink a little lemonade and not so many beers ... Maybe I'll remember my next thirty years ... My next thirty years will be the best years of my life ... Raise a little family and hang out with my wife ... Spend precious moments with the ones that I hold dear ... Make up for lost time here ... In my next thirty years ... (Tim McGraw: 'My Next Thirty Years')'_

Midgar. Afternoon. 

"Push, honey. Just one more." 

She grit her teeth as she pushed, the pain searing through her as their child finally slid its way into the world. Sweat glistened on her forehead and her hair was drenched. 

"It's a boy!" The doctor announced as the baby let out its first triumphant cry of life and was placed on his mother's stomach. 

She smiled a tired smile that spoke of sheer exhaustion, "I told you it was a boy." 

"I never doubted you, sunshine." He kissed her softly and brushed her sweat-drenched hair away from her face. Looking at his son for the first time, fresh from the womb, he announced, "He's beautiful." 

She was too tired to respond, but just held his hand in her own as the last physical bond between mother and child was cut and he was taken to be bathed, weighed, and measured. 

The nurse walked over to them, beaming happily as she placed the freshly bathed newborn in her arms. "Congratulations! He's a healthy 7 pounds 8 ounces!" 

He gazed down into the innocent blue eyes of his son as he sat down on the edge of the bed. She smiled at them both as she touched her son for the first time. "He looks like his daddy." 

He half smiled, half smirked in response. "Poor kid." 

She laughed at him and brushed her finger against the soft skin of her son's cheek. Without pausing, she spoke the name they'd chosen for their son. "Nicholas Lockheart Reno." 

***** 

_He sat next to his wife, his legs dangling next to hers over the side of the makeshift stage. Elena's idea to have a street party celebrating the completion of the first of many new buildings in the old Sector Seven had been a success, and they had taken a few minutes to rest from the dancing and games of the festivities. He placed the cigarette in his mouth and fumbled in his pocket for his lighter. Before he could light it he felt her tug the cigarette away. _

_"Hey!" He exclaimed, trying to get it back from her. "I told you I'd quit when we had a family." _

_She simply smiled back at him and broke the cigarette into two. "Exactly." _

_He quit smoking that very night. _

He smiled. He remembered clearly the night she'd told him, and looked down at the child he cradled in his arms as his wife got much needed rest in the bed. The others had come to visit, bearing gifts for the baby, and had gone again, ushered out by a stern looking nurse as she announced that visiting hours had ended. 

"I never thought I'd see this day," He spoke in a faint whisper, half to himself, half to the child that slept, safely cradled, in his arms. "I don't deserve any of this. I'm just an orphan, a former Soldier, a former Turk. The things I've seen, the things I've done." He shuddered involuntarily remembering. "I'll teach you everything you need to know, but I only hope that you don't walk the road I did." A tear slipped from his eye, over the crescent scar, and down his cheek. He was grateful for both the darkened room and for the sleeping audience. 

"But if you do, I'll still love you, and I'll hope that you find what I did. A second chance." He sighed and looked out the window, gazing into the starlit night. "I've got you, your mom, and somewhere, when we find her, your sister." 

His fingers lightly touched his son's smooth cheek as the infant slept blissfully through his father's entire talk. 

"I'm not going to blow the rest of my life. For you, for your mom, for your sister, I promise."

**- FINIS -**

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: Thanks to all of you for reading, reviewing, commenting, and bearing with me!! It's because of you that this went from the planned ten or so chapters to being the first in a three-part trilogy. I'm 95% happy with this story, but I'm not going back into it again to revise it. I'm done with it and moving on to other projects. Yes, really, I am.

Now go read "Madness Reborn", Ms. C's first story! (http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=811424) :)


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